


Hearts and Hand

by PanderrynRose



Series: Balance and Bravery [1]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: #Don’t copy to another site, #anxiety, Anal Sex, Blood and Gore, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Elijah Kamski & Gavin Reed are Siblings, Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Gay Sex, M/M, Non-Consensual Body Modification, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Smut, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-10
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-08 00:33:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 48,773
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17376149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PanderrynRose/pseuds/PanderrynRose
Summary: Gavin is accused of being 'anti-android' at work, and it all spirals out of control from there. While he and Nines try to navigate what this means--and what it does to their relationship--the two are struck by a huge change in their lives.





	1. Chapter 1

“Damn it. How is it we always arrive a few moments after the bad guy?” Gavin grumbled, noting the screams for help from a female. The late-morning fall sunshine glared into his eyes as he looked around for the vehicle he knew to watch for. Unable to find it, Gavin turned back to look for the location of the screams.

 They were coming from the alleyway. Unbuckling and throwing the seat belt off, Gavin turned to Nines.  Reaching over, Gavin pulled one hand from the steering wheel and squoze it. “No dying.” _I love you._ Nines’s  ice gray eyes met his, and he squoze back. “Same for you.” Emerging from the vehicle, Gavin and Nines moved quickly toward the screams. A female android—named Maria—struggled against the pull of the male android—Kevin—trying to drag her around the front of him as cover.

She’d come begging for help, about a week earlier. Gavin thought back, remembering how scared she’d truly looked then. She’d been receiving notes from an apparent stalker, one who worked for the “greater good” and wanted her to do so as well.

 “Let her go and we won’t shoot.” Gavin called out. Kevin didn’t seem to register and kept trying to drag Maria away. She resisted, pulling back. Her left arm was held in his left hand and was being used to drag her both in front of him—and to his car he’d parked completely inconspicuously in the middle of an alley, where she had stated she did not want to go.

This seemingly didn’t matter to Kevin; his intent was clear. Keep the woman with him, get her to his car. Beyond that, no one knew what was going on in his mind. As the Maria struck the man, she dragged herself out of the way, giving Gavin and Nines a shot at freeing her.

“Don’t shoot. The chances of hitting the female is….” Nines monotonous tone was buried under the gun as it fired.   _Bang._  Gavin had seen that this was the best chance they would get to fire and aimed so that he would miss most of the female andorids body, only possibly grazing her arm. The sound ricocheted around the small alleyway, and within seconds all four occupants were in motion. Gavin and Nines stood on one side, and the kidnapper and his victim stood on the other side. As Gavin pulled the trigger, he moved to make it so that he was able to pull the victim away from the criminal.

The bullet flew, grazing the arm of the pinned android woman, and hit the male perpetrator—another android—in the right pectoral area of his chest, wounding him. The impact loosened his grip, and moving quickly, Gavin jolted forward pulling the female away from the male.  He could only imagine the pain that was probably flooding the male androids system with errors.

Spinning the victim to Nines Gavin knelt down and tried to secure the man’s hands. The android swung at Gavin, whose reaction time was too slow to fully escape the blow. Taking the hit to the underside of one of his cheeks, Gavin used the momentum to snag and pin the hand, at which point Nines came around to help secure the man. As soon as the perp was in handcuffs, Gavin stood and rubbed at his newly forming bruise.

Gavin knelt down on one side of the perp, and Nines was on the other. Nines looked across the android on the ground—with a blinking red-yellow-red LED. “You’re OK, Detective?” Nines stuck to a professional vernacular, but the LED spun orange.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just got a tiny fucking bruise. The vic OK?” Nines nodded, then stated “Her arm was grazed, but no major damage occurred. She’ll be patched up at the station. I’ve called for backup to take her.”  Gavin let out a sigh of relief. “Let’s get this ass to the station and see if he’ll explain why he was trying to take a woman away against her will.” Gavin nodded at Nines, but noted that while the orange color had changed, the LED now spun green. “Everything OK, Nines?”

“Yes.” Not saying much else to Gavin, Nines turned his attention to the perp. “Please stand. We will not harm you any further if you cooperate, but we do need to take you into custody.” Looking over to Gavin, Nines stated “He’s going to need medical attention once we reach the station. I mentioned that in the call for backup. We need to hurry.” Reading the android his rights, Nines led him away to the squad car, and left Gavin to follow. _What’s up the green LED?_ Gavin wondered, confused.  

 

The moment they arrived at the station, Gavin knew that today was going to be a difficult one. After leading Kevin to a holding cell—where repair services waited for him—the call came down from above. Standing outside the door of the interrogation room, discussing the way they planned on interrogating the perp, Gavin and Nines were joined by Connor. Nodding a friendly “Hi” to Nines, he turned to Gavin and said “Fowler wants to see you.”

 _Oh, this is going to be GREAT._ Gavin tiled his head. “What? Why? What did I fuck up now?”

“I’m sure you didn’t scr……” At Gavin’s blank stare, Connor sighed. “I don’t know, don’t look at me like that. He just asked me to tell you. I’m the messenger; you’re not supposed to shoot those.”

“I’d like to shoot messengers sometimes, but your brother would kill me.” Keeping his tone light—so Connor would know it was a joke—Gavin nodded. “Thanks for letting me know.”

Nines shot Gavin a glance—one that said simultaneously _Haha, but seriously don’t threaten my brother_ and _Good luck—_ at the same time.

Walking away, Gavin allowed his sub-conscious to guide him through the office as he pondered what he’d done this time. Fowler didn’t waste time calling officers in unless he had to. Which meant that something he’d done had been wrong—at least by public perception. Other officers understood. The public didn’t always. Sighing, Reed knocked on the door and was waved in. “What’d I do?”

“Sit down, Reed.” Fowler waved to the seat in front of his desk.

“Shit.” Dropping into the seat, Gavin met Fowler’s gaze head on. “What’s up?”

“The public—and an officer—have accused you of being anti-android, and thus being more willing to fire on androids. Therefore, this latest shooting has brought up concern.” Fowler had never been once to mince words, and Gavin felt himself startle.

“I’m not anti-android. I was a fucking moron when I believed that, and I recognize that the stance is a stupid one.” Gavin could feel the heat—angry, bursting heat—rise in his stomach.

“I’m aware, but those making the accusation are pointing to today as more evidence. Would you have shot if the perp and victim were human?” Fowler’s eyes drilled into Gavin, and Gavin sneered.  
“I would have, yes. That was the best chance to get her away from him, and she was minimally injured. She can be repaired and have little to no lasting damage.” Gavin stated, trying to fight to keep the anger in his stomach. If the anger reached his lungs, he would go off like a firework.

“The men and women who saw what went down stated that you only warned the male once, and then you shot when your partner warned you not to.” Fowler’s tone was exhausted as he stared at Gavin.

“I warned him once and then shot because it was the only way to stop him. He did not respond to us, and he was still dragging the victim away. I acted as I thought was best. As Nines warned me, I pulled the trigger. It was simultaneous.” Gavin hissed out the last word, as he lost the battle to keep the anger from rising up.

“Reed, I’m not the enemy here. As it is, you’re going to be suspended for a few days as a committee looks over the shooting.” As Gavin shot to his feet and started to pull in air to shout, Fowler held up his hand. “I believe it was a justified shooting, but I may have you re-enroll in de-escalation tactics as a refresher course. We use our weapons as a _last_ resort, _not_ a first. And before you start screaming, know that I do not care what you are going to say. Now, get out of my office. We’ll call you when you’re cleared for duty again. Please leave your weapon and shield.”

Standing, Gavin snarled “But….”

  
“Not. Another. Word. Out.” Fowler’s patience had run out, and Gavin was fighting off the instinct to simply hit something.

Storming out of the glass cube, Gavin slammed the door behind him—marveling and angry when it refused to break. “God damnit. Fuck. Shit. Fuckers.”

Muttering, Gavin moved to his desk. Picking up his jacket, he threw it on. Pulling his phone from its habitual place in his right back pocket he sent Nines a text: Hey, I’m suspended. Pissed off the public, apparently. They think I’m ‘anti-android.’ I’m taking the car. Do you want me to come back and get you later on?

Sending the message, Gavin slammed the phone into his jacket pocket, and hunched his shoulders as he walked outside. Gavin threw his coat to the passengers’ seat, sat down and slammed the car door. Shoving the key into the ignition, then starting the car, he peeled out of the parking lot, barely registering the text message that buzzed against his back.

“Can’t look at it now. Will look in a few minuets when I get home.” Gavin repeated to himself, knowing how dangerous it was to text and drive. Stopping at a red light, he gave in and pulled the phone out before the light miraculously turned green.

“Figures. When I actually want to be stopped.” Tossing his phone to the side, he pushed his foot down so he could be home sooner.

The rest of the drive home went surprisingly fast. He arrived home in about forty minutes instead of the normal fifty or so. No red lights, or even racing against the yellow ones. Pulling into his parking space, Gavin looked from side to side. Someone had to T-bone him or something.

“My luck is crap. What the hell is going on?” Then a cold shiver ran up his back and through his arms. “Shit.”

 _I know that feeling. Don’t say anything that could jinx you. Pick up your crap and get inside._ Walking up the stairs, Gavin moved to his floor and strode down the connecting hallway.

Unlocking the front door, Gavin walked in, tossing keys into their bowl and his jacket haphazardly onto the coat rack, where it promptly fell off. “Whatever. Fuck it.”

Walking past the coat rack, he moved into the living room with the gray couch against the far wall, the glass coffee table and fluffy cats resting on both items of furniture. Walking over to the couch, Gavin scooped up Luna—a half Maine coon, half ragdoll mix—and sat down. Laying Luna across his chest, he rubbed her ears for what felt like a half-an-hour before the level of angry fell enough for him to feel like he could function.  

“Okay, OKay, OK.” Taking a deep breath, Gavin pulled his legs under him, and reached for his phone. “I can deal with this now.”

Mrrwooww _._ Gentle green eyes smiled at him. Gavin felt himself smiling back. No one was there to see, after all.

“Yes, Luna-moon. I know. I should have looked to see what Nines sent. But you’re here. And so is The Ass.” Donkey, a male fire-point Siamese, let out a deeper “mow” as a way of responding.

Rolling his eyes, Gavin picked up his phone. Unlocking it, he rubbed Lunas head as he pulled up the text from Nines: That is unfortunate, but I understand where they’re coming from. I’d appreciate a ride home.

Gavin felt his heart being pulled down into his stomach, and the rage he’d calmed gave way to pain as his organs rioted at the text. _I’m not reading this right._  

Looking at Luna, he stated “He doesn’t mean that. He must have meant something else. He has to know that I’m not anti-android.” Pulling Luna off his chest, Gavin placed her next to him. Firing back a text never seemed so important: Asshole. What do you mean, you understand where they’re coming from?!

The response came quickly: I do think that you display an anti-android attitude at times. You often don’t think as hard or as long before firing when it’s….

Gavin felt his heart that had been in his stomach being ripped out from his body. The pain rioted in his abdomen and brought him nearly to his knees. Tears blurred over his eyes, and he dropped his phone.

He heard it buzz again but didn’t bother to pick it up. Standing, he tried to calm his breathing. “Fuck. What the fuck? No. He can’t be…. He motherfucking can’t be serious.” Deep in his mind, though, there was no doubt. _Nines never lies_. He felt a light paw tap on his leg, but he pulled away.

_Wait, Fowler said an officer also accused me of being ‘anti-android’. There’s no way it could be Nines, could it? But I thought that he would understand that I wouldn’t do something to others that might hurt him. I’m not ‘anti-android’_

Going to the bedroom, he pulled out a spare workout outfit, and walked to the door without his phone. Turning back into the living room, the noon sun reflecting off of it. Gavin glared at it, as if it was the thing that accused him of being anti-android. _I need to have it in case of an emergency. Damn it._

He moved and picked it up. Shutting it down, he placed it in his back pocket, then dashed back into their room to grab his headphones and antique I-Pod. Shoving all of that in a bag, he took a deep breath to hold back the rage and tears.

Walking past Luna, he bent down and rubbed her head, then gave Donkey the same fast rub.  Looking at them, he whispered. “I need to leave. Can you adorable assholes hold down the fort?” Not waiting for a response, Gavin—having picked up his jacket and keys—fled the apartment.

Knowing that if he went to his regular gym that Nines would easily be able to find him, Gavin opted instead to go to a sister location across town. It was an extra hour drive, but right now it was worth it.

 Pulling in, Gavin parked and moved quickly inside. Pain was riding along his body hard, and he needed to do something, anything, to focus on something other than the fact that the android he loved thought of him as ‘anti-android.’

  _I couldn’t be anti-android. I won’t choose anything that would make it so Nines was less of a person. He is a person, and deserves full rights. As do all androids. I know that. I choose to shoot at ‘bad’ androids because of their choosing to break laws. That’s all._ Rolling his shoulders, Gavin got out of the car. _Maybe those de-escalation courses might not be a bad idea, though._

Flashing his gym membership card, Gavin turned toward the locker room area. Once inside, he pulled his extra gym clothes out—a pair of black basketball shorts and a ripped/sleeveless gray muscle t-shirt—he changed and threw his headphones on.

Throwing everything back into the bag—jacket, clothes, wallet, phone, and keys—he pulled out the I-Pod. Putting on the heavy metal/bad day playlist, he hummed along as he walked out with his bag in tow.  Moving to the first treadmill he saw, Gavin dropped his bag next to it, hopped on.

He ran for a while, not noting as time went on. Slowing down to a walk, he stood on the railing as he dug his phone out of his bag and turned it back on. It was four-thirty, and he had five missed calls and a bunch of missed messages from Nines. Stepping back onto the treadmill, he unlocked his phone. He didn’t bother scrolling up to read the rest of the messages—he wasn’t strong enough to handle that—he read the latest message.

Please pick up. I need to know you’re alright. I will track your phone if you don’t answer soon.  It had been sent about ten minutes ago.

Growling at the phone, he shot back: I’m fine. Don’t fucking track me. 

After hitting send, Gavin felt the phone vibration kick on as Nines called him. Scowling, Gavin declined the phone call and texted again, saying: I’ll send a cab to pick you up at 6:30. 

The phone started to buzz again, and Gavin once again declined the call and turned the phone off. Reaching for his I-Pod, Gavin set a timer for about six, and resumed the brutal pace he wanted.

After running for hours—with breaks to punch a  speed bag and to snag a granola bar and a drink from the vending machines—Gavin felt everything vanish. His legs were twitching with overuse, his clothing basically dripping with sweat and he finally felt nothing.  No rage from the suspension, no hunger from the missed lunch, no pain from what Nines had said. Just exhaustion. _I’m going to regret this in the morning, but it’s not like I have work to do or anything._ The pleasant chimes of the timer went off, and Gavin pulled out his phone, turning it back on.

Unsurprisingly, more calls and messages littered his unlock screen. Ignoring all of them, he instead called a local cab company, and then set the treadmill to ‘cool-down.’ Walking for another ten minutes,  he staggered off the treadmill, and didn’t bother to change clothes. He picked up his bag, and simply left.  The temperature drop hit him as he walked out, but that only meant that the numbness spread to the outside, as well as the inside. Walking out to his car, he swung in and started the hour drive home.

Pulling into his normal parking spot, Gavin felt relief as he turned off the engine, and simply sat for a few moments. He knew that his phone had been buzzing pretty much non-stop, and that Nines was waiting for him. Pulling the bag from the passengers seat, he pulled out the I-Pod and headphones again.

Putting them on, grabbed the bag and walked inside. Moving to the elevators, he waited for one and slumped against the wall as he ascended. Shivering, he moved along the hallway, and prayed that Nines wasn’t waiting to grab him when he walked in. This hope was dashed pretty much as Gavin stepped in the door.

“Gavin?” Nines sat on couch. He was in his trademarked black turtleneck and a simple pair of black slacks.

Gavin was too tired to respond in any intelligible language, but since he was wearing his headphones, he didn’t actually have to respond.  With his back to the door, he tried to start forward. Unfortunately, that was the very moment when his legs gave out from under him. _Slleecpch_. The sound of his sweaty body against the door was not a pleasant one.

“Gavin!” Looking up, Gavin saw Nines standing over him, worried. Nines pointed to the headphones, and then reached down to gently tug them off. “You seem exhausted. I’m not surprised, you appear to have been exercising for a long time. Here, let’s get you standing.” Reaching down, Nines held out his hand.

“No. I’m fine.” Staggering to his feet, Gavin struggled to walk without pain flooding his movements.

“Obviously. That’s why you can’t seem to move on your own.” Nines sarcasm was not appreciated, and Gavin ignored it as he pushed his way towards the bathroom. He wanted to get clean and then forget that life sucked.

   Gavin could feel the footsteps that were following him, and when he attempted to close the door, Nines pushed it back. Sighing, Gavin turned to the tub, and turned the water hot. His legs weren’t gonna hold up much longer, and he wanted to be clean when he passed the hell out.

“Gavin. Talk to me. My scans show that you’ve pushed yourself, and I think you have gone too far.”

Gavin simply grunted. Reaching down, he pulled his still soaked and now cold shirt off, dropping it on the floor.

“Gavin.” Nines’s  hand grasped his shoulder, “What is going on? Why have you been avoiding me?”

Sighing, Gavin shook his head. “I’m tired, I stink, and I don’t want to talk. Let it go, Nines.”

Gavin couldn’t see Nines LED, but he had a feeling it was spinning an angry orange. Pulling off his shoes, Gavin finished undressing. Bracing his arm against the wall, he stepped into the shower, and went through the mechanical motions of washing away sweat.

Darker spots were flashing in and out of his peripheral, and he knew it was a limited time until he was going to pass out. Nines hadn’t moved through the brief three to four-minute shower, and Gavin simply brushed past him, and went to the bedroom. Throwing on the first PJS he could find—the ones from last night: fleece bottoms and a sleeveless top—Gavin collapsed onto the bed facing away from Nines, curling up on his side.

Nines followed. “Gavin, you need to eat something. What happened? You seem to have pushed yourself to the point of ex…”

‘Nines, I’m f…” Gavin started, but that was as far as he got.

Nines’s  hands pulled him so that he was fully on his back, and Nines’s  face was less than an inch away from his. “No, you are not fine. I mean, if you define fine as exhausted, upset and in-pain meat sack, then yes, you are ‘fine.’ I could even believe that is what you thought ‘fine’ was before I came into your life. But that is not what fine means now. What is going on? I know it has to do with that first text message I sent. I didn’t need to be a detective android for that. But what I don’t know is what is going on in that human brain of yours. I need you to translate.”

“It’s nothing.” Closing his eyes, Gavin felt a spark of anger fly. “Also, just to clarify, I’m not anti-android.” As Nines’s  LED flashed blue again—as if he understood why now—Gavin continued. “The public will usually look for the worst in people. It doesn’t matter that the public thinks I’m an anti-android asshole who shoots each one I come across, except the one I’m currently screwing.”

 _Your thoughts and opinions matter, though. And you made it clear that even if I’ve changed, I’m still simply not good enough to be considered ‘good.’_ The thoughts were bitter, but he wasn’t done yet. His inner anger rose. But it fought a losing battle against the exhausted state he’d put himself in. “I’m going to sleep.” Pulling against Nines’s  hands, he tried to turn away again.  

Holding him down, Nines’s  eyes flashed, pain and understanding and exasperation all convalescing in his gaze. “Gavin, I didn’t mean that… I never meant.... I just understand where they’re coming from. You seem to feel much easier about shooting an android target than a human one.”

“And yet, that still means that you think I’m anti-android.” Feeling the wave of unconsciousness lap at the back of his mind, Gavin laid his head back. Closing his eyes, he felt himself go under as a tear or so snuck out. The last thing he felt was Nines’s  hand against his cheek, brushing it away.


	2. Chapter 2

Something in his gut woke him up later. Opening his eyes, he found himself wrapped in Nines’s  embrace. Looking up, Nines’s  eyes connected with Gavin’s.  _Something’s wrong._ Glancing around, Gavin noticed that the cats—who’d apparently settled at the end of the bed—had their ears back. Sitting up, Gavin flicked on his bedside lamp, and Nines did the same on his side. Gavin glanced at Nines. Mouthing “What’s going on?”, Gavin rubbed at his legs and did his best to quietly stand.

“I heard someone trying to pick the locks. They’ll be successful in a moment. I’ve called for help. Be ready.” Nines mouthed back and leaned over to pick up his service weapon. Turning to the door, Nines locked his sights onto the bedroom door.

Picking up the cats, Gavin shuffled them to the closet, and closed them in. At least if there was a firefight, they wouldn’t be in the way. Kneeling by the bed, Gavin rubbed vigorously at his legs, trying to work out the sting.

The quiet sound of the front door opening was like a string that placed around both of them. The sound of footsteps only pulled the string tighter. For a few moments, they hung on the edge of whatever was going to happen.

Then, the door was swung open, and an EMP grenade was thrown into the room. Detonating before either Nines or Gavin could react, the small grenade knocked out everything that was electronic in the room. Including Nines. As Nines dropped down to the ground, body twitching as if he was having a seizure, Gavin tried to reach him before he hit the ground. “Nines!”

He was unsuccessful, as the intruders swept into the room. Dressed in what appeared to be plastic gowns concealing everything, one intruder appeared to be about 6’2” and the other appeared to be 5’3” to Gavin’s trained eye.  One held a pistol and leveled it at him. They didn’t bother with Nines, who was still struggling.

One spoke in a distorted voice telling Gavin to: “Step away, keep your hands in the air, and do not move.”  As soon as Gavin complied, the other intruder—the one who had only been a step behind the first—moved over to Nines’s  bedside table. There, they picked up Nines’s  handcuffs, and moved to Gavin. Securing Gavin’s wrists, they then led him out of the bedroom.

“What did you do to Nines? Is he going to be OK? Who in hell are you? What do you fucking want?” Gavin struggled, as much as he could with a gun pointed at his face.

“We did nothing that will harm your partner for an extended period of time. He’ll just need to reboot. Now, it’s time for you to go back to sleep. Your friends in the squad will be here within the next few moments, and we need to be gone by then.”

“How do you fuckers kn…” Gavin’s voice fell silent as the butt of a gun smacked into his temple.

Gavin opened his eyes, and felt panic riot in his stomach. His hands weren’t cuffed anymore, but this wasn’t a place he recognized. It was a small room, with no windows or outside views. He was laid down on a cot, and it stretched from one wall to the other. Shivering, he sat up. “Shit. What the fuck?” He did a fast pat-down. _Still in PJs, and…_ glancing down at his feet _…no shoes. Fuck. That’s going to make it harder to get out of here._

“So, you’re awake.” A female’s voice spoke from outside the only door in the room. “Good. Now I can explain.” Opening it, a young female android stepped inside. She was one of the intruders.

 Taking mental notes of her description so he could report them later, Gavin registered that she was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, and had brown hair and hazel eyes.

“Oh, goodie. Villain exposition. I don’t care about your mission. Where the fuck am I?” Gavin snapped, glaring at the young female.

 “Our mission is why you’re here, idiot.” Despite the glares Gavin threw at the woman, she ignored him and continued. “We’re simply a group of androids looking for justice. You—the anti-android asshole cop—are simply one of the people we’re going to punish.”

“That doesn’t tell me where I am.” Gavin tried his best to reign in his temper.

“You’re in Detroit. Don’t worry, we don’t plan on keeping you long. We just need to secure a few more things before we pass judgement and punish you. It won’t take long.” Nodding to him, the female stepped back outside the door. “My name is Rian. My partners that are outside are Cory and Nate. We’ll be right here, so don’t try to escape. Or do. I would love to knock you down. There’s no way out except this door, and there are three of us here.” Her smile was snow-cold.

Gavin wasn’t impressed. “I trust my colleagues, and I trust my partner to find me.”

“Oh, don’t worry, we’ll be done before they can put it all together. Now, I would suggest getting some sleep.” The female android smiled.

“Why would I sleep when surrounded by hostile people?” Gavin snarled.

“Because you’ll need it. Good night, Detective.” She closed the door, but the sounds of a lock clicking into place were absent. _I can still open the door._

“Fuck.” Gavin grumbled. “I’m in deep shit.” Dropping back down onto the cot, Gavin closed his eyes. _What do they mean, that they’re going to ‘pass judgment and punish’ me?_

Standing, Gavin walked to the door and sat down next to it. _If I’m stuck here, I’m going to use these assholes for info._

Listening, Gavin waited for any information he could gather from the ‘guards’ outside the door.

“How long should it take to get the rest of it in order?” A male voice asked. “I’m not entirely sure I support this.”

Rian answered. “We’ve leaving to pick up the other two packages now. They’ll both be here within an hour or so. We’ll figure out what needs to be done based on recommendation, and then we’ll get started.”

“This is a bad idea.” The same male voice stated. “He’s already suspended from work. They met that demand. Why not let the system deal with him?”

“Because they’ll give him a slap on the wrist and let him go. We need to act to protect ourselves. Look at what he did to Kevin.” Rian insisted.

“We’ve talked this through, Nate.” Another deeper male voice answered. “I understand if you don’t want to watch when it happens, but we need you to be ready to help us.”

“But everyone else agreed that this was a bad idea.” Nate insisted.

“They’ll see when we get the results we want. If nothing else, we’ll have made it impossible for this asshole to shoot someone else.” Rian’s voice was iced over.

_Fuck. Do they plan on killing me? What do they mean, two other ‘packages’? Wait, if it’s only those three—which it sounds like it is—there would only be one who is guarding the door once they go to pick up the other ‘packages.’ Maybe once the two leave, I have a chance to get out._ Gavin leaned back against the door, staring at the ceiling. _Should I try?_

_Damn, that’s a dumb question. I have to try. I have to run… but how? I don’t think I can run the entire way home…. Shoes would be a necessary part of that. They must have transported me, but they’ll be using that to pick up the other ‘packages’. So, I guess my only option is to run for help.  How long do I have before they come back?_

Footsteps echoed as they moved away from the door. Waiting was the worst part. The fact that he was impatient and each minute felt like three years was also not helpful. Waiting five minutes, he knew that if they were truly going to be back within twenty-five minutes, he needed to run soon.

Gavin felt bone-deep fear. Rubbing his hand over the scar on his nose, he tried to figure out what to do. _If Nines and the others are not here within ten minutes, I’m going to try._ Repeating it to himself, he kept waiting. After eight more minutes, Gavin stood. He was simply going to have to try and run for it. Better than giving in.

Walking to the door, he threw it open, and took off at a sprint. He could feel each movement under his feet as he ran. The building appeared to be in the middle of construction. _Fuck. I’m going to step on a nail and not be able to run. And then I’ll probably die at the hands of the batshit insane people._

 Following the hallway, he could hear the footsteps—only one pair—following him. Turning and twisting, Gavin found an exit. Pumping harder, he ran, hitting the door, and felt it give. The cold of the concrete was a welcome relief on his feet, but it was only for a split nanosecond.  A hand closed hard around his shoulder, and the momentum forward was stopped. Dropping down on what felt like concrete steps, Gavin felt a fist connect with the underside of his chin, and once again, darkness overtook consciousness.


	3. Chapter 3

The next thing he knew, he was back in the small room, and another person was there as well. Another man—a larger man with arms the size of bricks—was sitting against the wall, watching Gavin. Sitting up, Gavin pulled one foot toward him to look at it, making sure he could run if necessary. _They don’t hurt, so I think I’m OK…_ Looking back up, Gavin nodded to the man. “Hi.”

“You’re awake. Do you know where we are?” He asked, seemingly wary of Gavin.

“No. I was brought here against my will. I take it you were, too?” Gavin answered.

Chuckling, the man nodded. “Any idea why these androids would do this? I don’t understand.”

Standing up, Gavin sighed. “I have an inkling. Have you been accused of being ‘anti-android’ recently?”

“Yes. I run a meat shop. I had a couple of negative online reviews. I didn’t mean to be ‘anti-android’ I just misunderstood the situation. I was holding an order for someone, and I was emphatically told that a human—as in, not an android—was coming to pick it up. So, I didn’t believe the woman when she came in for said package. Once I confirmed it, I apologized and gave her the order. However, by that point, it was too late to redeem my mistake. The customers blasted me online, and it kind of went viral in our local area.  What about you?”

“I’m a cop. I got told this morning that I was considered anti-android because of my willingness to fire on androids.” Gavin sighed. Sitting back down on the cot, he leaned against the wall. “Once they collect the other person they want, I worry for all of us. I’m not sure what’s going to happen, but I’ve been told that at least I will ‘be judged and punished.” _I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I have to assume that the ‘punishment’ is for all of us. That means that we’re all in danger._

“This situation…I don’t have words to describe it. Gods help us. From what I heard when you were out, the third person is on their way right now. Something about a nurse?” The man seemed to slump back against the wall. “My name is Matt Green, by the way.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Gavin Reed. I’m sorry that you’re here.” Nodding to him, Gavin heard footsteps. Tensing, Gavin motioned Matt to his feet.  As the man stood, Gavin hissed under his breath “Be ready. We might be able to run.”

The door once again opened, this time a female was pushed through. Falling, she scrambled back from the door, away from the grim-faced trio that stood outside. This was a familiar face to Gavin. “Maria?”

The female android’s jaw dropped. “Detective Reed? What’s going on? Where are we?”

“I’m not sure. Are you alright?” He asked, leaning down and picking her up.

“No. I was just kidnapped out of my house, told I was ‘anti-android’ and brought here. They have pretty much blocked my communication features, and I’m scared. I am not OK. And I don’t like that you’re here, either. They’re planning something, and it’s not good.” Maria talked about a mile a minute. Her LED spun a vibrant and angry red.

_I need to calm her down._ Taking Maria by the hand, he gently pulled her toward the cot, and sat her down. Kneeling in front of her, he released her. The LED flickered red, orange, red, orange. _A little bit calmer. That’s better._

Using his best ‘I’m-talking-to-a-traumatized-witness’ voice Gavin asked:  “Can you tell if they’re listening to us?” When Maria nodded, he asked “Are they listening to us?” Maria shook her head. “No. Two are away, and the one here is both in denial and in stasis mode. He seems too focused on his own thoughts.”

 Gavin smiled, trying to hide how scared he was. “OK. Listen to me. Do you know what serial numbers these droids are?”  The LED spun yellow, before Maria nodded. Gavin whispered. “Good. Store the memory. I’ll tell you what I’ve heard. It’s mostly just names, but it should be enough…Well, whatever happens, we’ll have a record. I know this is scary, but I need you to record. Can you do that?”

“Yes. Do you really think that we’ll….?” The LED spun green, jumped to orange, then spun yellow again.

“Shh. They may not be listening, but we need to be quiet.” Motioning Matt over Gavin quietly spoke. “We need to talk and record as much as we can, and then we’ll figure a way out.”

“To answer your question, I don’t know. But I know we’re not going to go out without leaving evidence of us being here. That’s...” _part of…_ “what they’ll need to solve the case. So, if at all possible, leave traces of yourselves here. If you can get it on them, even better. I know I probably left some trace out on the steps.” Reaching up, Gavin ran his hands through his hair, pulling away loose strings of it. Dropping them to the floor, Gavin nodded. “And now I’ve left traces here.”

Matt and Maria looked at each other. Matt ran his hands through his hair, but Maria wasn’t able to do so as easily. “I can’t do that. I don’t really have hair. It’s all a part of my synthesized skin.”

“I know this is a little bit scary, but what about your blood? I know that it fades to human eyes, but it won’t to android eyes. And it carries your DNA signature, right? Or your equivalent?” Gavin watched for the lightbulb.

“Yes, it does. I’ll do that, then.” Pricking her finger, she smeared blue blood onto the wall, and onto Matt and Gavin. “It’ll also show that we were together, so that way they can connect the three of us.”  Gently, she took a small band-aid that was in her pocket and placed it on the cut.

“OK. Now, let’s figure out what we know. I’ll go first. Ready to record?” Maria nodded, and Gavin continued: “It’s currently sometime between eleven PM and four AM on either the eighth or ninth of October. My name is Gavin Reed, and I’m a detective with the DPD. I was kidnapped from my home earlier tonight by what appears to be a small organized group of androids. I was knocked out and brought to what appears to be an office building in renovation.”

“I was the first one brought here. I have been joined by two others, a Matt Green and a female android named Maria. The perpetrators are androids named Rian, Cory, and Nathan. Rian is a 5’3” female with brown hair and hazel eyes. One accomplice is 6’2” male.  There is another accomplice who is male.”

“From what I could overhear, they are the only ones in the group and are thus the only ones who need to be searched for.  I don’t know serial numbers. From what I’ve heard, they plan on seeking justice for crimes committed against androids that won’t be punished by the police or law enforcement because those places are believed to be biased against androids. I was accused of being anti-android today. I believe this is why I was taken.”

Turning to Matt, Gavin nodded. “Matt, your turn. Your voice will help make it so that others can identify you. Maria, you’ll need to verbalize as well. I know it’s your memory and that you can just save it, but it’s a good idea to be verbal.”

Matt and Maria nodded. Matt spoke, explaining his story. He’d also been taken, after having anti-android accusations being thrown against him. “I was pulled out of my home. I live alone, and I don’t know that anyone will be looking for me until morning. My son runs my butcher shop with me, and I’m worried for him. Please keep an eye on him, and if…. If I don’t make it out, tell him that he’d better run that shop as best he can, because I know he can.”

Gavin moved over, knelt down, and rubbing his shoulder. “Let’s not borrow trouble.”

“Yeah, because we’re totally borrowing trouble by preparing to die. I mean, it’s not like we were kidnapped and are currently being held hostage.” Matt’s deadpan tone made Gavin smirk.

“I know. No sense in stressing now. Let’s find a fucking way out of here.” Gavin smiled. “OK, Maria. Your turn.”

“My name is Maria Calldweller.” Continuing, Maria recounted her exploits, starting with the morning. She went through everything, and Gavin sighed. “OK. That’s the best we can do. Maria, store that somewhere safe, or in an ‘emergency read/if I shut down read this file’ type area.”

Maria nodded. “What do we do now?”

Gavin looked to Matt. “Do you two know how you got here?”

Matt shook his head. “Knocked me out.”

Maria nodded. “By car. But it’s an older model that requires a key to operate.”

“Could you get it from them? And use the car?” Gavin asked.   
“Unlikely. I’m not sure who has the key, and they’ve hidden the car.” Maria shrugged, obviously feeling bad about that.

“OK, there went that idea. Maria, really fast question. The access panel on the back of your neck—can it be locked?”

“I’m not sure. I do, but that’s because I’m a nurse android and people tend to grab onto me. So, I don’t know.”

“OK, Good to know.” Turning to Mat, Gavin mulled over his choices. “ How fast a of a runner are you, Matt?”

“I’m not. I recently injured my leg when I tripped over a carcass.” Matt blushed. “I hate getting older.”

_OK, running out is probably not going to happen. But maybe I can get these two out. They can go for help, and maybe we’ll catch these assholes before anything happens to me._ “Maria, you’re a nurse, correct? Do you have a weight limit that you’d be able to carry?”  
Maria nodded. “Yes. I am able to lift and carry at minimum 500 pounds.”  Gavin nodded. “Matt, how much do you weigh?”

“I’m about 280 pounds. Why?” When Matt raised an eyebrow, Gavin explained.

“OK. Maria, if you exceed your weight limit, do you slow down significantly?”

“A little bit. I would go from optimal speed down by a few miles per hour, and I’m not that fast to begin with. I can go up to 35 MPHs. Those three tap out at about 30 MPH. I don’t know if I’d be able to carry both of you.” Maria glanced down, then looked back up.

“OK, then, Maria, you’re going to take Matt, and carry him. Matt, hang on to Maria. I’ve tried to run once, so I know where an exit is. I’ll lead you, and once you two get out, go to the DPD. Once you’re there, ask for Connor or Nines. Both are androids, and both should be able to recreate and find this place.”

“What about you?” Maria asked, standing up. “It seems that you’re the primary target. When they brought me in, they pulled a lot of medical information—procedures, sanitation and stuff like that. I think they’re setting up a mock-operating theater or something. I don’t know what they plan on doing, but it’s not good.”

“I know that it’s not good. But I wouldn’t be able to keep up with you, even if I had shoes. That’s why I need you two to get out of here. If you can make it to the DPD, you should be able to send help back. If they do grab on to you two, go for their wires. But, most of all, I’m asking you guys to hurry. If one or two of us get out, they can send help back. I’m trusting you two.” Gavin shook his head as Matt opened his mouth. “I’m going to protect you two in any way I can.”

 Turning to Matt, Gavin held out his hand. “When they come to take us, feign a leg injury. I’ll suggest that Maria carries you. They might say no, but it’s the best chance we’ve got. When I say ‘bullshit’, we start running. I’ll lead you out and you guys keep running.”

Matt and Maria looked unsure. “Are you sure about this, Detective Reed?” Maria reached out, and gently took his hand.

“Totally _.” Nope. Not sure about anything except the fact that I’m blind scared, and I know you two are as well. But…_ “I will do my best to get you two out.” Gavin stood. “Now it’s a waiting game until they come to get us. Maria, will you let me know when they get close?”

Nodding, Maria took her place right by the door. Looking at Matt, Gavin sat down on the cot. “It’s probably better if we get some sleep or just simply rest if we can’t sleep. Best to be ready for whatever happens. You take the cot, and I’ll take the floor.”

Matt shook his head. “Take the cot. I want you to be able to run.”

Not wanting to fight or draw attention to them, Gavin nodded. ‘Night.”

“Night.”

Closing his eyes, Gavin did his best to relax his body and mind enough to rest.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter gets graphic and dark. Check the tags and don't read if this will disturb you.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed before Maria gently shook both of them awake. “They’re coming back.”

Sitting up, Gavin walked over to Matt. Projecting his voice, Gavin said “Lean on me, OK? I’ll help you get up.”

Matt nodded, and struggled to get to his feet, leading to a bunch of loud thumps against the wall. Once standing, he looped an arm around Gavin’s shoulders and kept his leg elevated.

Rian unsurprisingly was the one to enter the room. “Well, you’re all awake. Good.” Glancing over at Gavin and Matt, she asked “What’s going on with you two?”

“My leg hurts.” Matt snapped, seemingly angry.

“Well, I don’t care, asshole. If it’s going to slow you down, just lean on the other shitstain. He’ll help you. After all, you’re not an android.” Rian glared at the two of them.

“Actually, it might be more helpful for me to take him. I’m able to carry his weight. It would help you get this done faster.” Maria smiled.

“You disgust me. Why do you choose to help humans?” Rian rolled her eyes. “But if you want to help me get this done faster, I’m not going to bitch. Grab the old coot. I don’t care.”

Gavin felt something inside him clench. _She took the bait. Good._ Helping Matt climb on Maria’s back—which was weird given size contrast—Gavin took his place between them and nodded.

“Let’s get this over with. I’m tired of seeing your face. After all, I never thought they’d be able to build an ugly robot, but they managed with you, didn’t they?”

Rian’s hand slapped Gavin, hard enough to take him to his knees. “Well, I mean, I didn’t think human mothers spawned such little bitches, but your momma managed.”

“Wow, ‘your mama’ jokes? Lame.” Gavin stood, rubbing his cheek—where he knew a bruise was forming—and stood. _I’m going to be a rainbow of bruises by the end of this, and I didn’t even get to have fun getting them._

“Let’s go. I don’t want to delay this either.” Leading the three prisoners out of the small cell, Rian led them at a slow pace along the corridors. Gavin kept his eyes open, and when he saw a hallway he recognized, he smiled.

“This is such bullshit.” And when Rian went to respond, he took off running. Maria and Matt were singular steps behind. And Rian was just behind them, trailed by Cory and Nate.  Putting everything into it—knowing that Maria could keep up and then go past him—Gavin sprinted as fast as he could to the door. Throwing it open, he let Matt and Maria out and closed the door. Looking at his two companions, he shouted “Go as fast as you can and get the fuck out of here. GO!”

Maria nodded and took off at her top speed—somewhere around thirty-five miles an hour. Gavin took off behind them and watched as they vanished. The sun had started to lighten the sky. As Gavin ran, he prayed this wouldn’t be the last time he saw a sun rise. He felt as if he were hobbled, and he could feel small stings of pain radiating from his feet. _I hate my life. Goddamnit. Fuck. Ow._

Footsteps pounded behind him, in sync with each other. As they grew nearer, Gavin picked up his speed as much as he could, but it wasn’t much use. _Fuck. I tried._ As he felt on hand descend on his shoulder, Gavin spun around, groping for the access panel on the back on the androids neck.

He got it open before both arms were imprisoned, and he was pinned on the ground. _Damn it._

He’d known he wasn’t going to get far. He’d accepted that. But none of the trio continued after Maria and Matt, knowing it was unlikely to catch them. Cory and Nate held him on the ground, while Rian paced back and forth before turning to Gavin.

“Damn it!” Rian shouted. Murder flashed in her eyes, then cooled into reserved. Her tone lowered. “Fine. We’ll have to do it ourselves. We tried to keep it as safe as possible for you, Gavin, but you’ve screwed that up. We” Rian gestured to Cory, Nate and herself, “find you guilty of being more willing to fire at andriods and are therefore guilty of anti-android prejudice. Since we cannot trust the courts or your brothers in the force to deal with you, we will. And to make it so that you won’t be able to shoot us anymore, we’re taking your arm.”

At those words, Gavin began to struggle and fight. _Fuckity fucking fuck fuck fuck. That’s why they had a nurse and someone who could chop things up. Shit. Fight back, Gavin. It’s now or never._ Gavin couldn’t do anything and was dragged back to the small building.

Instead of struggling, Gavin went limp as they went up the steps. _They might be able to lift me, but they won’t expect it. It might give me an advantage._

“Nice try. We recognize that going limp is a way to throw us off balance.” Rian’s voice was maliciously gleeful. “Wont’ work.”

Gavin was dragged upstairs, to a small room that had been outfitted with medical equipment. _They must have been setting this up while we were planning to escape._

Rian and Nate hefted Gavin onto the table, tying him down quickly. His right arm was tied out to the side. Panic and fear rose over Gavin. “You don’t want to do this. Killing an officer will bring down the entire city against you.”

“We’re not going to kill you. That’s why we took the medical info from that bitchy nurse. If you die later, it will be due to something other than us.” Rian smiled, standing off to his right, and Gavin felt his stomach shrink. She picked the axe, hands going white against the obnoxious yellow handle.   _Shit. SHit. SHIT. Don’t show weakness. Maybe you can out-bravado her out of this._

Staring her down, Gavin pointed out the semi-obvious to those with a functioning brain. “If you do this, complications would be a result of your actions. That makes you responsible.”

“Look, I decided on this when I chose to do this. We’ll get out. We can blend. After all, who can tell one android from another?” Cory sounded off from Gavin’s left side.

Rian nodded. “Yep.” Picking up an axe, Rian hefted it above her head. “Ready, Nate? Cory?”

“Please reconsider, Rian. It’s a bad idea.” Nate’s voice echoed.

“Look away, Nate, if you’re so scared. I’m going to apologize, detective.” Gavin felt his heart nearly stop. She continued. “It probably won’t be a clean cut. I wasn’t able to get information for the asshole who chops up meat for a living.”

Putting all her weight into it, Gavin felt his blood freeze. “Pleas……” Then the axe connected. The sound that rang out didn’t seem human. Gavin took a second to recognize through the shock and pain that the voice was his.

The axe had slammed down two to three inches down his bicep and had only gone three-fourths of the way through. Pain rioted, and his system went entirely into shut-down freak out fight or flight. Turning his head, he felt vomit push out, and then started to hear and see things through the dark tunnel pain created around his vision.

Lifting up the axe, Rian sighed. “I was right. Didn’t go all the way through.” Her voice was far away, but Gavin still understood what that meant. He just didn’t have any fight left.  Hefting the axe, she brought it down again, severing the arm. The string snapped, and darkness started to consume him. After the axe head was pulled away a second time, something pressed into his arm. Fresh pain flared, bringing him back for a split second.

Rian was saying something. Gavin couldn’t really hear her. Her voice was distant. The pain and fear weighed him down, as was the blood gushing from the open wound. He didn’t have a choice. Pain dragged him down into the void.

Gavin could hear something. It sounded like his name, and a hand rose to cup his cheek. The hand was gentle, and a little bit cold. He was being lifted and carried. Opening his eyes was too hard. And besides, consciousness brought pain. The voice was familiar. _Nines?_ He slipped back under.


	5. Chapter 5

Opening his eyes, Gavin groaned. The light over him shone down but had been dimmed. The bed he was on was more comfortable than the table, and a track ran along the ceiling in an oval pattern. _Those are for… for curtains. Like in hospitals. I’m at the hospital?_  Turning his head to his left, Gavin saw Nines, seemingly in stasis mode. _He found me._ A rush of warmth spread from his stomach, also followed by confusion. _Why did he look for me? I’m ‘anti-android.’_ Looking up, Gavin noted an IV led to his arm, and he was willing to bet that it was some super type of painkiller.

“Nines?” His voice was quiet, rusty and rough. And talking was a mistake as his throat hurt. Closing his eyes, he groaned. _Now that I think about it, everything hurts. Damn, did a number on myself. The running, the being slammed into fucking concrete… what god did I piss off?_

“Gavin!” Nines’s  eyes opened immediately. Practically scrambling over to the bed Gavin was on, Nines gently cradled Gavin’s head to his chest. Gavin winced when Nines brushed the bruise on his cheek, but pressed closer. Nines whispered.“I was so worried you wouldn’t wake up.”

Gavin felt tears leak. Dashing his hand under his eyes, he tried to hide that fact.   _I was afraid I’d never see you again. But aren’t you still angry at me?_ “Were the doctors able to save my arm? I can’t feel it, but I don’t know if that’s because of the painkillers…. Did Matt and Maria make it out?”

Nines avoided the first question. “They’re waiting outside right now. You were so smart to get them out safely.” Nines gently laid Gavin back on the mattress. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Were you able to catch them?” His voice was weak. _Fuck, please say yes. I don’t know what I’ll do if you didn’t._

“Yes. Connor and Hank took over. I was…. emotionally compromised. I’m currently being told next to nothing. Everyone at the precinct is terrified of me right now.”

“What’d you do?” Gavin mumbled, yawning.

Nines’s eyes softened, and then ran over Gavin. _He’s obviously scanning me._ “Nothing that can’t wait until later. Sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.”

“Love you.” Gavin whispered. _Wait, did I say that out loud?_

“I love you, too.” _Yep. Apparently did. Isn’t he still mad? I’m confused._

Nines gently took Gavin’s hand in his. Comfortable, Gavin slept.

 

Opening his eyes, the first thing Gavin saw was Nines. _I’m sure they were able to save my arm. They probably found me fast enough. It’s just the painkillers they have me on._

“Nines? You awake?” Gavin looked over as Hank walked in the door. Hank smiled at him. “Hey, you’re awake. Didn’t expect that. Way to go, hero cop.”

“Asshole, it’s way too early for that. What’s going on? Nines said he was taken off the case.” Gavin struggled to sit up.

“Gavin, don’t push yourself.” Connor's voice came from nearby the door. “You just underwent three surgeries. You don’t need to push yourself at this point.”

“Three? What was the third?” Gavin felt fear in his stomach.

“Gavin….” Nines looked at Hank. Hank blanched. “Oh….. I’m gonna let you deal with that bombshell, Nines. I’ll be outside if you need me.”

Gavin felt his stomach shrink. “What bombshell?”

Nines came, sat on the bed. Gently tilted Gavin’s head so that they were making direct eye contact. “Listen to me. They were unable to save your arm. The bitch who cut you up didn’t do a clean job.”

 _No. NO. He has to be lying. But it’s Nines. He wouldn’t lie._ Tears started to fall. _No. No. No No._ “No. nO. NO.” Gavin’s voice rose to a wail, then fell. “No.”

Reaching around his body, he felt for his arm. _It has to be there. It has to._

Gently, Nines took Gavin’s hand, and pulled him into his arms. “Cry it out. I’ve got you. You’re safe.”

Weeping openly for a split-second, Gavin collapsed onto Nines’s shoulder, grasping for his life and feeling the phantom limb twitch.

Suddenly Gavin pushed Nines away, and went to started to fight to get the bandages off his right stump. “It has to be there. It has to be.”

Nines pulled Gavin’s hand away from his arm. “Gavin.” No-nonsense, tinged with a little bit of panic. “Gavin, stop.”

“No. It has to be there. It has to be. It’s my arm. I need that. It can’t be gone. No. No. NO.” Disbelief pounded through Gavin as he heard the door open, and another nurse rushed in.  
Nines pinned his arm down—which didn’t help the panic at all—and Gavin felt a small needle against his skin. _They’re sedating me. Fuck._

Opening his eyes—once again—Gavin felt tears simply fall. _Fuck it. I’ve had enough._ Doing his best so that no one would notice him, Gavin wept. However, breathing was kinda hard. _Don’t let anyone see me. Don’t let anyone hear me._ Breathing heavy, Gavin tried to stay silent.

He failed at that, and Nines appeared at his side scooping him up to hold him. “Shhh. I love you.” Nines quietly held Gavin as he wept. He mumbled a continual mix of a few phrases. “You’re so good. I’m so proud of you. I love you, and we will get justice for this. It’s OK. I’m here, I’m here.”

Struggling, Gavin took a deep breath. “I…. I can’t deal with this right now. Talk to me about something else. Anything else.”

“The cats miss you. And I can’t wait to have you home again. I had an idea for fixing that leak, and I wanted to run some paint ideas past you. I think an accent wall in the bedroom would be nice. I thought navy? Or some deeper blue. From what I understand, it’s a calming color.”

As Nines kept up a steady ramble of mundane things Gavin simply held on. He mumbled an affirmative once in a while, but otherwise simply held. Eventually, Nines stopped talking. They sat for what felt like hours, simply holding onto one another.

“Gavin? Is it OK if I call Hank in? He needs to talk to you.” Nines gently shifted his hold, laying Gavin back against the bed and raising the bed so that it was in an upright position.

“They’re still here? What time is it, anyway? Or what day?”  
“It’s about 10PM on the day you were kidnapped. You’ve been either asleep, sedated or unconscious since about seven or eight this morning.” Nines’s smile was gentle. “I’m so glad you’re awake, Gavin.”

Turning his head away, Gavin mumbled. “It’s OK if he comes in.” Gavin stared blankly down at his hand. _It can’t be gone. I was good, I did good. Why did…. It can’t be gone._

“Are you sure? I can hold him off….” Nines reached over, but Gavin shook his head. “Let’s just get it over with.”

“OK.” Nines crossed over to the door and gestured in both Connor and Hank.

“Hey, Gav.” Hank sat down next to him. “You doing OK?”

“Not really. I think I’ve gotten stuck in the denial part of things.” Phantom pain and shivers ran up and down his spine. Shaking his head, Gavin tried to sit up straighter. “What do you need?”

“We need you to tell us what happened.” Connor was gentle. “The recording you made was helpful—especially because it contained almost everything we need to catch them—but we need to know what happened after the recording ended.”

“It ended with Maria’s story, right?” Connor nodded. Gavin sighed. “We figured out a plan to escape. Matt said he wouldn’t be able to run. I didn’t know what they had planned, but I figured our best shot was to move when they thought they had control of us. I’d tried escaping once and had found an exit. I don’t know why it was so easy to get away from them.” Staring at the ceiling, Gavin tried to center himself. “It might have been that they simply weren’t organized enough. Maria carried Matt, and I led them to the exit. After exiting the building, I told Maria to take off. I knew she could get away, and that the danger to them was less likely to happen if they got away. I told them to go to the DPD.  I tried to follow them, but I’m only human. I couldn’t keep up. The three androids easily caught me. I was dragged back to the building.” Breathing hard, Gavin wrapped an arm around himself, and curled up into a ball, rocking slightly.  
“Hey, it’s OK. Don’t force yourself.” Hank’s voice echoed off Gavin’s ears.

“I struggled. I tried to get away. I went limp. They expected that, and the next thing I knew I was strapped to a table, my right arm p..pp…pinned out.” Feeling his heartbeat speed up, Gavins’ speech started to spill faster in response.

“The bitch picked up the axe, apologized, and then told me it wasn’t going to be a clean cut. She was right.” The pain in his right arm kicked, and Gavin grabbed at it, cradling the stump. “I just remember pain after that.” Tears slipped by, and Gavin was unaware of them. However, Hank, Connor and Nines all knew what it meant that Gavin didn’t snap at them that he wasn’t crying.

Reaching over, Connor smiled and placed his hand on Gavin’s shoulder. “You were brave. I’m amazed at it. We all want you to get better soon. We’ll let you rest. Nines, Fowler says that you are on leave for as long as Gavin is in the hospital.”

Surprised to hear that, Gavin looked up. _Something else to think about._ “Why? What happened?”

Connor glanced at Nines. “He didn’t tell you?”

“He hasn’t mentioned a lot of things. What happened?” Gavin said, glancing over at Nines’ stoic expression.

“He basically ripped apart an interrogation room trying to get answers about you. He wouldn’t stop, even when Fowler told him to. I had to force stasis on him.”

Gavin let his jaw drop. Looking at Nines, he goggled. “You did what?” He couldn’t help the bit of hysterical laughter bursting out. _Ow, ow, ow. I’m just laughing why?_

“Yep. The room had to be repaired. I think Nines took out a wall.”

“How?” Gavin gasped out, between bits of hysterical laughter, fastening his eyes to Connors grin. _Nothing’s wrong. I’m OK. I’m OK. Why am I laughing like a psycho?_

“He wasn’t supposed to be in there in the first place. He didn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. He found his way in.” Hank smiled, leaning against the door.

Flabbergasted, Gavin simply continued laughing, slowing down to a real laugh. Leaning back, he smiled at Nines. “Nice.” _So you’re not still upset?_

Nines reached for his hand. “I would have done almost anything to get you back.”

“Ugh. People in love. C’mon Connor, let’s go before it infects us.” With that phrase, Gavin felt himself calm down. _I can always count on Hank to be an ass. Why does that make me feel better?_ Breathing deeply, Gavin nodded to Hank _._  Hank turned and left.

Connor nodded to them, and followed Hank, calling out that love wasn’t a disease or infectious.

“Anything else happen while I was out of it?” Gavin squoze Nines’s hand, tugging him to his side. “Come sit over here.”

“I don’t want to risk hurting you. I know that the probability is low—somewhere around 5-7 percent, but…” Nines reluctantly moved over. Grabbing onto his shoulder, Gavin pulled him down so that he could lean on Nines. He made sure to keep his arm…stump away from Nines. He didn’t know what contact with it would do, but he needed Nines. _Don’t push me away. I need your strength right now. I know you might still be mad about….well, things, but…. Gah. I still need you._

“And yes, something kind of weird did happen. A ‘representative’ of your brother dropped by.” Nines’s voice was quiet, but Gavin heard the question.

“I’m sorry. I should have mentioned him before. I just don’t think of him much. I don’t know how he’d know I was here.” Gavin rubbed at the stump.

Nines immediately took his hand away from his arm—stump. “That might aggravate the wound. Stop. We already have you on several different anti-biotics.” His LED flashed red, then spun back to yellow. “Who is your brother?”

Gavin eyes Nines. “Promise not to freak out?” _You’re going to be so mad._

“From that answer, I can probably guess it’s someone I don’t like?” Nines smiled down. “I promise.”

“It’s…..Kamski.” Gavin muttered under his breath.

“Gavin, I know sarcasm is your go-to, but….” Looking at Gavin, Nines did his equivalent of a jaw-drop. “Kamski? Seriously?”

“Yeah. I stopped talking to him a long, long time ago. I’m completely in the dark as to why he was here. Or even how he found out.” At Nines piercing ‘I’m going to get you to talk glance, Gavin continued: “Anyway, never mind. Is it possible to see both Maria and Matt? I think I owe them a ‘thank you’ for my life.” Gavin smiled at Nines.

Nines nodded. “They were a god-send. Maria especially. She led me back to you, and I was able to arrange medical services to meet with us. We’re going to talk about your brother later, but before I let them in, there is one other thing to mention.”

“What?”

“The media got ahold of the story and wants to talk to all three of you. We’ve banned them from this room—and from you for the time being—but a few might try to slip in.” Nines’s worried look flashed, and then his LED spun aqua.

“I don’t want to think about reporters right now.” Gavin looked at the door. “I just want to make sure they’re alright.”

Sliding out from under Gavin, Nines moved to the open door. Looking back, Nines waited. Gavin nodded. Opening the door, Nines gestured to someone. _Probably them? I don’t know, could be a nurse_

A twinge of pain shot up his arm as he brushed it against the mattress. Hissing, he groaned. “What the hell.”

Nines looked over. “You OK?”

“Yeah, just brushed my arm against something. It sucks.” Sitting back, Gavin did his best to compose himself. “They OK?”  
Nines was still standing in the doorway. “Yeah.” Stepping out of the way, Maria and Matt both entered, seemingly unsure of what to say.

“Hi. Thanks for getting Nines.”  Gavin smiled, although he knew it was a weak one.

Maria walked up and gently took his hand. Her LED spun orange. “I’m sorry they did this to you. I wish I was there. Maybe I could have changed the situation.”

“I doubt it. That girl was haywire.” Gavin tried to smile. “And the assholes with her weren’t gonna stop the crazy.”

“Yeah, no. But maybe we could’ve helped you. We owe you a lot. You got us out.” Matt stood at the foot of the bed, seemingly partially green. “And this is what they did to you. Bastards. I hope they rot in jail.”

Gavin smiled. “I don’t know. I just don’t want them near me ever again.”

“You’re handling this way better than I would.” Matt smiled. “Good to see that.” Leaning over, he gave Gavin’s leg a friendly tap.

 _I’m not really. I’m using you guys as a distraction, so I don’t have to think._ “I know that a lot of others were expecting me to go full meltdown, but I don’t think I’ll do that.” _Yet. Not until I’m alone. Somewhere. Hopefully home._

Matt nodded. “I just want to say, thank you. I don’t know what would’ve happened if you hadn’t gotten us out of there. I don’t know if there was a punishment for me or Maria as well, but we didn’t have to face it. So, thank you.”

Maria cycled, and then nodded. “Very much so.”

Tears welled, but Gavin did his best to make it so they wouldn’t be seen. Turning his head and coughing, Gavin found that his voice shrunk. “You’re welcome. Please, I’m feeling kind of tired. I’m glad both of you are OK.” _Don’t cry, don’t cry, DON’T cry._

Neither put up much of a fuss. “I’ve got to go, anyway. It’s still a workday for me. Detective Reed, swing by my shop when you’re on your feet again. I owe you a couple of steaks.” Matt nodded and took his leave.

Maria simply smiled, gently placed Gavins hand back on the bed, and walked to the door. Opening it, she glanced over her shoulder. “Thank you, Detective Reed. I wish you the fastest recovery possible.”

Walking out, she closed the door and Gavin turned to Nines. “I’m gonna conk out for a little while. If you want to go somewhere, or… I don’t know, if you want to leave you can.”

Nines’s LED cycled yellow. “I don’t want to go anywhere.” Taking Gavin’s hand, he held it.

 _Same._ Gavin smiled. “I will need that hand back eventually.”

“Hmmm…. I get to decide that.” Smiling, Nines held on as Gavin drifted off.


	6. Chapter 6

Opening his eyes once again to the now familiar sight of the ceiling of the hospital, Gavin groaned. _What woke me up?_ Looking to his left—in a still more than half asleep haze—Gavin noted someone missing. _Nines? Where’d you…_ “go?” Grabbing the bed-side controls, Gavin raised the bed, looking for his boyfriend. Looking at the clock, he sighed. _7:40 AM, huh? Wow. I slept through the night?._

Noting the noise outside his door, Gavin assumed that one of a few options had happened: 1.) _Nines had gotten bored with being in a hospital room (Who could blame him?) and went to get some fresh air_ ; 2.) _The press had gotten in while he was asleep, and Nines had escorted them out_ ; 3.) _His asshole of a brother was out there and causing a scene._

_The only question now is: Which is worse? I really, really, really don’t want to deal with the press….but Eli is on that level too….. and I don’t want Nines to be bored…._ Lying back down and closing his eyes, he figured it was better to play possum at this point. _If it’s Nines, I’ll wake back up. If it’s the press, they can’t get anything from me when I’m asleep, and if it’s Eli….. well I’ll have Nines kick him out._

The door opened, closed and Gavin could hear a couple of voices.

“See? He’s still asleep. If you’ll forgive me, I don’t know that he’d want you here when he wakes up: you’d be stressful for him.” Nines’s voice was angry. _Why?_

“I don’t care, I need to talk to him. He…I….I need to apologize. I might be able to help with his arm.” Eli’s voice. _Fuck._ “Are you even sure he’s really asleep?” _Fucking fucklings._

“He’s not that great of an actor. He’d be saying something if he were awake.” _Liar. But I’m not gonna call you out._

“He’s not asleep. Scans indicate that he’s aware.” A female voice. _I bet I know who that is. Damn it, Chloe. Whhhyyy?_

“Gavin? Please talk to me. I need to apologize.”  Eli’s voice, literally above him. _Go away._

“I have baby pictures of you on my phone and I will show your partner.” Eli always seemed to know what buttons to push. Jolting up, Gavin felt his head collide with Eli’s chin. Neither would be hurt, but Gavin knew Eli would back off a little.

“Jesus. Aggressive as always, I see. Good to know that losing an arm didn’t have any impact on your personality.” Eli’s voice is caustic, and Gavin looks down as tears gathered in his eyes. _Fuck off, Eli. I’m already in the hospital. Did you come to see me bleed?_

“Wow. Apology. Got it. So, are you always this much of an ass to someone in the hospital or do they need to be related to get the full Kamski effect?” Nines’s voice echoes off the walls, and Gavin bursts out laughing.

“Oh, I love the effect I’ve had on you, Nines.” Gavin grins at Nines, who crossed over to his side and sits down next to him.

“Love you too. And you knew before now. I know: after all, I can read your bio-signs.” Nines’s smile is blinding, and Gavin snuggles back onto his chest and enjoys the ‘what-the-actual-fuck-is-going-on-here’ stare that Kamski is currently wearing.

“Soooooo……. You can leave now? Please?” Gavin felt something nag at his gut. _Why are you here?_ “And how come you came to see me? I thought you were happy with the ‘we’re not siblings anymore’ thing?”

“The hospital called. I’m still listed as your brother on your paperwork.” Eli’s eyes were attached to the floor. “I’m sorry, I know I’m an ass.”

“For what, exactly? The most recent insult or for something else?” Gavin gently took one of Nines’s hands in his.

“For abandoning you when you were just looking out for me. For telling you that I didn’t want a gay man for a brother. For not being anywhere near as supportive as you were with me. Yes, for the latest insult as well.” Eli moved to the side of the bed, kneeling down.

The familiar eyes met. Brown to brown. “And I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you needed me. Please, forgive me. And maybe call off the boyfriend so he doesn’t rip out my spine?”

Gavin snorted. “I don’t think I could stop him if he were actually determined. But I don’t understand why you want to reconnect now.” Nines’s hand warmed, squeezing his as Eli moved closer.

“Gavin, when I got that phone call……. I didn’t know what to do. I was so afraid I’d never see you again. I know it’s dumb, we haven’t spoken to each other in years. But I don’t want that to continue. I could’ve lost you today. I know I don’t really deserve forgiveness--I should have listened to you about those scamming bastards—but I wanted to pretend for a little bit that I could be socially acceptable.” Eli reached up, gently taking Gavin’s chin in his hand. “But now, I want to re-connect with my favorite little brother.”

“Only brother.” Gavin mumbled, and then blushed. _I haven’t said that in years. Why is it still instinct?_

“True. Now, I’m assuming you’re tired of both me, the hospital in general and lots of noise. I’ll leave. But I’m going to give you my phone number. When you’re out of the hospital, and you want to talk, call me. Hell, if you want to talk and you’re still in the hospital, call me. Now, I have a kind of weird question…. Don’t freak out.” Eli stood, rubbing at his arm as if he’d just gotten a shot.

_I don’t like this…._ “OK? What’s the question?”  
“Can I…. I want to hug you…. Can I? I know that your boyfriend is currently there, but…” Eli stuttered, and eventually stopped.

Looking at Nines, Gavin sighed and smiled. “Well…. Yeah, I guess?” Nudging Nines out of the way, Gavin reached out for his brother.

Eli wrapped his arms around him for a few moments, sighing. “Yeah. I missed you. You ass. Please don’t hurt yourself further.”

Pressing his head against his brother’s arm, Gavin rolled his eyes. “Fuck you, I’ll do what I want.”

“You would.” Eli moved away. “Again. Call me when you need me.”

Opening the door, Chole let Eli out, then nodded to both Nines and Gavin before she left.

“Well, I think today goes down in my own personal Twilight Zone episode. I’d like to leave this place now and go back to normal.” Gavin reached for Nines. “I’m sorry. But I think he needed the hug, too.”

Sliding back on to the bed, Nines said nothing. He just took Gavin into his arms. Once he held Gavin securely, he leaned back, and relaxing with closed eyes.

_Man, the rhythm is soothing._ Closing his eyes, Gavin pressed against the heat.

The peace as unbroken for a little while, and that was more of a blessing than either could have asked for. The comings and goings had left little quiet in their world. It was nice to simply be together, and to have nothing disturbing them.

All good things come to an end, though. “We still need to talk about the other night.” Nines’s voice was almost harsh in the silence, later that night.

Gavin pressed his cheek against Nines’s chest. “I know. But can’t it wait until I’m off painkillers and out of the hospital?”

“Yes.” Nines’s voice was calm.

 With that agreed upon, both settled back into the comfortable positions, and slept the rest of the night.


	7. Chapter 7

The next four days were spent in the hospital, with Nines and Gavin finding very little time to talk about much of anything. Between the treatments and aspiring journalists trying to break in, there was little time to talk at all. Gavin, for his part, was still slightly in shock, and dealing with phantom pain. Having seemingly gotten out of the denial phase, Gavin had bounced between anger and acceptance.

However, upon entering their apartment, Gavin felt a huge weight slide off his shoulders. He still hurt—less than before—but it was so nice to be away from everyone.

“Mrrowoww!” Luna and Donkey both popped up at the door, rubbing against both Gavin and Nines.

Leaning down, Gavin did his best to scoop up Luna with one hand. It wasn’t graceful, but Luna was pretty chill about being basically manhandled, and melted into Gavin.

“Kitty.”  Pressing his face against her belly, Gavin held tight. “Fluffy angel baby. Snuggly.”

“Puuuurrrurururr.”

And the weight around his heart started to melt. “Best thing to come home to, ever.” Walking to the couch, he flopped down, careful to avoid hitting his stump.

Leaning back against the arm of the couch, he could feel Nines leaning over him.  Opening his eyes, Gavin met the concerned stare of Nines. “Everything OK?”

Nines shook his head. “We need to talk about that night. What was going on?”

“Nines…. I was hurt.” Staring into the eyes of the cat as she purred happily on his chest, Gavin let it spill out.  “When you said that you understood them. That you saw the ‘anti-andorid’ attitude in me. And I figured I’d hurt you to have you say something like that. Because it was almost like saying I didn’t love you, because you were an android. That I wasn’t capable of it. How could I love an android if I were ‘anti-android’?  It was like you said, “I know that you’ll actively chose things that will hurt me in the long run because of your attitude.’ And I hated feeling that way, because in some way I worry that you’re right. So I fixed the problem. I made it so I couldn’t feel.”

“And I was so confused as to why you were there in the hospital with me. Why would you choose to associate with someone who was anti-android? God, I’m the worst and I don’t know why you stick around.” Nines’s hands descended on his shoulders, then moved to pluck Luna off of his chest. Placing her down on the coffee table, Nines turned back to Gavin. Scooping him up off the couch, Nines wrapped Gavin’s legs around his waist, and walked with him into the bedroom. Kicking the door closed behind them, Nines laid Gavin out, caging him in his arms.

And Nines began to kiss him, pressing his lips against Gavin’s.   
“Gavin, I never meant that. I love you, in every way possible.” Kisses were strung along his neck. “I know you’d never choose to actively hurt me.” Gavin felt his breathing speed up as Nine began to shuffle his t-shirt up his body. “I know,” kiss to his neck, and then lower, to his now bared chest, “that you love me. And I love you. You are so kind, good and wonderful. I want you to know that. I never thought that you would be so hurt by the thought of me doubting you. You are so much more to me than that. I think that you’ve come a long way, and I’m sorry I hurt you.”

Gently, Nines moved Gavin’s T-shirt out of the way of the wrapped stump. Pressing kisses to it, Nines gently moved his hand around the injury. “And I hate that someone did this to you. But I’m going to be here to help you get justice. This changes nothing between us.”

Blushing, Gavin deflected as best he knew how. “OK. Keep kissing me, and I’ll forgive you.”

Nines laughed. “No problem. But next time we argue, talk to me before running yourself to exhaustion.” And went back to his new task.

After a few moments, Nines sat back, running his hand up and down Gavin’s side. “I think you need to eat and then take a pain killer.” Wrinkling his nose, he glanced up and down Gavin. “And maybe a shower.”

“I mean, it never hurts…” Nines’s grin widened as Gavin attempted to push him away. “That didn’t work when you had two arms. What makes you think one is going to work?”

Gavin let out a burst of laughter, before realizing something. “I…. I think that’s the first time I’ve thought about it and not….”

“Not what?” Nines prompted, sitting back.

“Not felt ugly or unbalance or just angry about everything.” Rolling to his good side, Gavin sat up. “It’s so weird. I’m still…. Nah. I need to shower.”

“Gavin.” Nines’s hand rested on his shoulder.

“I’m still unsteady on my feet, Nines. I still feel a little unsure—angry, scared, or wrong all fit—about all of this.” Moving his stump, Gavin tried to work it around a bit. They’d said it would help with the circulation issues.

“You’re not ‘wrong.’ Scared and angry, I think are justified for now. Go shower. You’ll feel better. Food—and drugs—will be waiting for you. Don’t lock the door, if you need me, call.” Nines flashed a quick grin toward Gavin as he left the room.

“Yeah.” Slipping out of the bedroom and into the bathroom, Gavin flipped on the water, running it cooler than he normally did. Stepping under, he shivered. Rushing through bodywash and shampoo, he scrubbed gently at shoulder, and frantically everywhere else.

Stepping out, Gavin glanced at the mirror. _I just look….wrong? I know it’s not my fault, but…how am I going to work like this? One-armed cops aren’t really a thing._ Sighing, Gavin slipped out of the bathroom and back to the bedroom for clothes. Pulling on a pair of pj-pants and a long-sleeved shirt, he slipped back out into the kitchen.

“You usually take longer.” Richard turned to look at him as he entered. “You feeling OK?”

“Yeah. I’m fine.” Gavin flashed a smile. _Not really._

“You’re lying. Why you think I don’t know is beyond me.” Nines stern tone echoed through the kitchen, before softening. “But I won’t push you. I know you’re adjusting.”

Looking down, Gavin stared at his hand _._ And could feel—and practically see—where his other hand would’ve rested had it been there. _If you pushed, I would clamp down. But… I don’t know how to handle when you’re so accepting._ “I can still feel everything they did to me. And I can still see where my hand is supposed to be. I’m not used to it being gone. I keep…”

Placing painkillers and food down in front of him, Nines knelt beside him. “I know. Is there something else bothering you?”  
“Yeah…. It’s mostly that, but what am I going to do about work?  I love my job, but cops can’t be one-armed. I need to find new work. And I don’t know that I’m qualified for much of anything. I’m scared, Nines. I don’t want to become a burden to anyone.” Gavin stared at the food, unaware he was doing so.

Reaching up, Nines tilted his chin down, and brought his lips to Gavin’s. Pulling back, he pressed their foreheads together.  “I love you, you are not a burden, and we’ll figure it out. You know that we can get a prosthetic arm made for you. It would be fully functional and would afford you the ability to keep your job. It’s OK.”

Sighing, Gavin closed his eyes and savored Nines being so close. “Thank you for dealing with my anxious ass.”

Pulling back, Gavin turned to the food. “Also, you are an amazing cook.”

Rolling his eyes, Nines stood. “I won’t say ‘I’ll always cook for you’ but I don’t mind every once in a while. I did have a question I wanted to bring up earlier, but I wasn’t sure how to approach it.”

“Shoot.” Gavin mumbled around a mouthful of spicy pasta.

“What happened between you and your brother?” Nines smirked as Gavin choked slightly on the pasta. “And don’t talk with your mouth full.”

Swallowing quickly, Gavin did his best to shoot the android the ‘Not funny” glare. Nines merely continued smirking. “It’s a long story. You’re gonna want to sit down.”

“OK.” Taking the seat next to him, Nines stared at him. “Tell me.”

“OK. So, Elijah and I are half-brothers. Same sperm donor.  However, as you can probably guess, one of us was the favorite and the other was the screw-up.” Gavin began, in between bites of pasta. “Elijah was, is, supernaturally talented and intelligent. However, there was one great equalizer for us. Social anxiety. Him because of his intelligence, and me because of my orientation. We’d both had some run-ins with people who were less than kind to us because of those traits. It made it so that we’d stuck together mostly, having at max two to three friends each.”

Standing, Gavin moved to the fridge and pulled out the carton of juice. Using his hip, he pushed the door close. Placing the juice on the counter, he reached and pulled out a glass. Pouring himself a glass, he took a few sips before continuing.

“So, when Elijah accidentally created life, he was suddenly catapulted into an extremely social world. At first, he asked me to be his back-up, his wingman and best friend at all of those hoity-toity events. I didn’t mind. Or, at least I didn’t mind much. I’m not going to lie and say it was fun, but I was with my brother. Eventually, a small group of people began to surround Elijah. I knew that a few of them were social climbers after his cash. I told him so.”

Clutching the glass, Gavin moved back to the table and sat down. “And he didn’t listen. He told me I was jealous, that I had no right to ruin what he’d created, that I was wrong. I snapped back, and it only got worse from there. Suffice it to say, he told me he was embarrassed to have someone so dumb as a sibling, someone who was gay, and that I was ruining his reputation by being related to him. He stated that being a cop was dumb, and that it wasn’t much of an achievement. People were questioning him—his intelligence and his sexuality—he didn’t take it well. I blew up, saying that if he was that embarrassed by me, that we were no longer siblings. I disowned him, and walked out of his life.”

“Didn’t he ever try to contact you?”  Nines asked, watching for any sign of pain.

“Once he realized he was wrong—one of those leeches took him for a good chunk of change—he tried to contact me. By then, I had made up my mind. If he was going to tell me those things, I wasn’t going to stick around.” Picking up the glass Gavin downed the pain-killer and drained the glass before letting his voice go monotone. “I haven’t spoken to my brother since, not until he showed up at the hospital.”

“I don’t agree with what he said, but I think that staying away for years isn’t a great idea, either.” At Gavin’s stricken glance, Nines shook his head, reaching up to cup his cheek. “No, what he said is wrong. And I’m not saying that it isn’t. Gavin, I hate that he said that to you. But I also think that while what he said hurt you, it’s a little bit extreme to cut off your sibling. Maybe you can re-connect with your brother now.”

“I know it’s kind dumb. Once I’d made that decision, I didn’t want to go back. Why should I let him talk to me that way? Or treat me as if I were the enemy?” Gavin leaned back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. “I admit that it was nice to see him again.”

“Why not call him now?” Nines grinned at him, standing back up. “He could come over and talk. Maybe you can clear the air somewhere you’re more comfortable.”

A twinge went through Gavin’s shoulder, and he shook his head. “Nah. I’m hurting. I think I’m just going to go to bed.”

“Want me to rub your shoulder?” Nines walked with Gavin as they moved towards the bedroom.

“Yes.” Flopping down on his stomach, Gavin felt relief flood his system. “I’m so glad to be home.”

The mattress compressed by his hip, and he could feel his shirt being tugged upwards. Shifting his weight so he didn’t have to sit up, Gavin did his best to help Nines pull his shirt off over his head.  
Gently, Nines kneaded Gavin’s right shoulder, heating his hands in small increments. Gavin drifted off, letting the feel of warm hands soothing the pain in his shoulder relax him. Once the pain killer had fully kicked in, Gavin rolled over, pulling Nines down to him. _I want to hold on to you._

Nines wrapped his arms around him. “Time to sleep.”

Nines didn’t have to tell him twice, and Gavin drifted off, secure in his boyfriends embrace.

_The axe grew larger, and so did the smirking face above him. “I’m sorry, Detective. You’re too dumb to let handle a gun. So, we’re  fixing the problem.” Her hands flashed a brilliant white, and the axe swung down…._

Sitting bold upright, Gavin felt the gasp freeze in his throat. Pain zinged up his right arm, and down his spine. _It’s OK. Just a dream._ The alarm clock read 3:01 AM _._ Glancing over, Gavin noted that Nines had gone into deep-sleep mode. _He’s probably just as exhausted as I am. If not more so. I slept in the hospital. I don’t think he’s gone into sleep mode more than a few minutes at a time._

Slipping out of Nines’s arms, Gavin pulled the blanket back up around Nines. _Sleep, gorgeous._

Walking out of the room, Gavin was immediately tackled by both Luna and Donkey. Weaving around his legs, Gavin grinned. “Hi, babies.” He whispered.

Moving carefully—his balance was still off and living beings circling legs complicated things—Gavin made his way to the couch and flopped down. Both cats immediately jumped up. Donkey settled on Gavin’s lap, and Luna took her spot on his chest. Rumbling, Luna stretched out, and booped Gavin with her paw. _That was so cute, I’m gonna die._

Reaching over, Gavin snagged the remote from its place on the coffee table. Flipping to his video account, Gavin found a compilation of old cartoons, and pressed play. Lowering the volume, he let his mind slowly slide back into calmer territory.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed, but soon enough, Gavin found himself fighting to keep his eyes open.  Luna and Donkey had both curled up on him. _Guess I’m not moving tonight._

Muting the TV, he fell back asleep.

He’s woken up when he’s pulled from the couch into Nines’s arms. “Nines…? Wh…?”

Nines shook, and he held Gavin closely. “I thought…. You weren’t in bed…. God, Gavin. I thought they’d come back for you.” Pressing against Gavin as he knelt next to the sofa, Nines buried his face in Gavin’s shoulder.

Only marginally awake, Gavin closed his eyes and wrapped his arm around Nines.

“Meep-rrer.” Luna protested suddenly being confined. Pressing her back paws against Nines’s chest, she jumped out from the embrace.

“Gavin. Please don’t do this again.” Nines’s voice broke, and it sounded as if the android was close to crying.

Pressing his lips against the crown of Nines’s head, Gavin mumbled “I promise.”

“You’re still asleep, aren’t you?” Nines’s voice was relaxing a touch.

“Mmm….”  Gavin’s own mumbled response was the last thing he heard before he woke up at 11:50 AM.


	8. Chapter 8

He was back in the bedroom, and Nines was wrapped around him once again. _Did I dream waking up and snuggling the cats?_

Reaching to Nines, Gavin gently ran a finger over his cheek. Leaning over, he pressed a gentle kiss to the side of Nines’s face.

Nines’s eyes opened, and he reached up to pull Gavin to his chest. “Don’t scare me like that again.”

“Sorry.” Gavin snuggled. “Nightmare…. I needed to move.”

“If ever I sleep through that again, wake me up. I’d rather know where you are.” Nines rubbed his hand over Gavin’s back. “Do you want to call your brother soon? I’m betting he’s awake.”

“Hah. No. He’s probably still asleep. Which is why I’m going to call him now.” Pushing off of Nines’s chest, Gavin rolled over to pull his phone from its habitual spot on the nightstand. “Wait, I don’t have his number.”

“Yes, you do. Chole plugged it in when she dropped by the first time.” At Gavin’s glare, Nines’s face broke out into a smirk. “And I have it, if you want to pretend that never happened.”  Nines’s cheeky smile grated against his nerves.

“What’s it listed under, asshole?”

“Not ‘asshole’, but I did put it under ‘Weird.” Nines sat up letting the sheet fall to his hips.

_Nice._ Unlocking his phone, Gavin selected the contact.

Ring. _One._ Ring. _Two._ Ring. _Thre…_

“Hello?” Elijah’s voice came through clearly.

“Damn, thought you’d still be asleep, BB.” Gavin felt fear riot through his system.

“Gavin?! Oh, I’m so glad you called. What’s up?”

“OK, please bring it back down to earth. It’s weird enough to have you on the phone, let alone gushing. Stoooopppp.”

“OK. Hi. What do you want?” Eli’s tone was much more familiar.

“There we go. I was wondering if you wanted to talk. I’m home, and I have a space I can kick you out of if you piss me off too much.” Gavin mumbled.

“Hell yes. I’ll be over in a few minutes.” Eli’s voice rang out, cheerful again. “See you soon!”

“Gah… preppy nerd stoooopppp.” Gavin groaned, but the call had already disconnected.  “Well, I’m either going to kill him, or….yeah, I think I’ll kill him. Got any ideas where to hide the body?”

“Nope. And I won’t let you kill him. I’d miss you for a week before I’d bust you out of jail. Things would just go downhill from there.” Nines’s snarky tone made Gavin smirk as he walked to the door.

“I’m going to shower. I’ll probably hurry because who knows how long until that weirdo shows. Would you mind opening the door if I’m not out?”

“Gee, what ever will I do? Opening a door is obviously beyond the reach of a simple cutting-edge detective prototype like myself. So I’m going to say a solid “no” to that one. Sorry, Gav.” RK flipped him off as he moved to the closet to switch clothes. “Go shower, you need it.”  
Returning the bird, Gavin laughed. “Asshole.”

Stepping into the bathroom, Gavin felt pain riot up and down his shoulder. _Oh, yeah. Arm gone, and life is pain. Ow._

Letting out a low groan, Gavin reached around and rubbed gently at the arm. “Fuck. Painkillers are next on the list.”

Flipping on the water, Gavin waited for it to heat before stepping into the shower. He rushed through washing again—mostly because his brother would be here soon—and he wanted to be clean.

Scrubbing at his chest, a thought occurred. _How in the hell does Eli know where I live? I’ve never told him, and I moved here after I was able to afford an apartment not on the trash side of town._

Rinsing, Gavin dashed back to his room and threw on a pair of shorts and a ¾ sleeved T-shirt.

Walking to the kitchen, Gavin reached for his meds, and started to try to open them. _Fucking child-proof caps. Fuck, ow._

Walking back into the living room, Gavin moved to Nines and nudged him. “Help.” Holding out the bottle, Gavin winced as pain began to riot again. “It’s hurting and I can’t get the cap off.”

“Sure. Here.” With ease, Nines opened the bottle, poured out the dosage and handed it to him.

_I’m both jealous and angry that I’m jealous._ “Thanks. Any idea how long it’ll take them to…” A knock sounded on the door. “Well, damn. Think that’s the miracle that brought you to life?” Swallowing the pills dry, Gavin felt awful and wobbly. Leaning against the wall, he tried to regain his balance.

Rolling his eyes, Nines motioned to the couch. “Sit down until the pain killers kick in a little more and you feel like being human. I’ll let them in.”

“I never feel like being human, I just AM human.” Gavin mumbled as he dropped down on the couch.  His stump burned, pain hot against the end of it. _Fuck my life. Ow. Why is it that I let them do this to me?_

Footsteps echoed as Eli and Chole both entered. “Hey, Gav. I’m so glad to see you” Eli’s voice spoke to his right, and Gavin popped his eyes back open. Eli stood to his right, Chole stood near the door, and Nines was closing the door.

“Hi, Elijah.” Gavin did his best to keep his tone neutral. _Don’t start a fight._

“C’mon. Call me Eli. We’re brothers.” His happy tone was strained. Anger bled through it.

“Brothers who haven’t talked in years. That changes a few things. Speaking of which, Hi, Chole.” Gavin closed his eyes again as pain shot through his arm.

“Hello, Gavin.” Chloe’s dulcet tones rang out, but she said nothing else.

“You said you wanted to talk, Eli. OK, but you get to answer a few questions first.” Gavin motioned to the couch. “How in the hell did you know where I lived? And how did you know I was in the hospital?”

Gavin felt the couch shift as Eli sat down. “I must still be your emergency contact—they called me. As for how I knew where you lived…. I have to admit to being a partial stalker. I’m sorry, but you weren’t letting me back in, and I just wanted to know that you were OK…. Or at the very least, not dead.”

“I’m not going to say it’s OK that you stalked me, but…. yeah, no, not OK asshole. But whatever. I’m willing to bury that particular hatchet.” Gavin sighed. “I could really use your help finding a prosthetic, though.” _Please don’t say no, please don’t say no._

“I would love to help, but it comes with a price.” Eli’s voice waffled, bouncing between nervous and confident.

“Well, I should’ve expected something like that. OK. I guess that’s all I can ask. Thank anyway, Elijah.” Standing up, Gavin moved away, taking a circuitous route away from Eli and to the bedroom.

“Aren’t you going to ask what my price is?” Eli’s voice had hardened, resolve flashing.

“I doubt I could afford it. I’m just a detective. I can’t pay that much.” Snarling, Gavin kept his back to Elijah. “Thanks, Elijah. I appreciate you stopping by.” Gavin continued walking.

“I just want to be able to call you once in awhile and talk to my younger brother. I don’t expect you to pay for my help. We’re family.” Eli’s voice stopped him cold.

“Eli….” Gavin turned back to the couch. “I promise that this won’t set us back to the way it used to be.”

“I know that it can’t go back to the way it was. But I want my sibling back. I know you’re mad. And man, you hold a freaking grudge.” Eli smiled at him. “But so do I. And what I said was awful. I hate myself for not seeing that you were there for me.” After crossing over to Gavin,  Eli gently placed his hand on Gavin’s shoulder. “I just want a chance to work myself back into your life.”

_Is this worth it? Can I handle this? Fuck, what other choices do I have?_ Sighing, Gavin nodded. “You’re lucky I’m fucking stupid. I’ll agree, but we need to start out slow. I’m still not on even footing.”

“OK. I understand. Thanks for having me over. I think you probably want to be alone?” Eli removed his hand but seemed reluctant to do so.

“Yes.  I mean, you could stick around, and I’ll tell you about how wrong you were.” Gavin grumbled, and Eli laughed.

“I’ll pass. You’re worse than a bear with a broken jaw when you’re pissy. Remember when you got your wisdom teeth out? I swear you lived on rage alone.”

Gavin felt his lips twitch up. “Shut up. You subsisted on nerdiness.”

“Hey, I remember imparting some of that nerdiness on to you, asshole.”

Nines’s voice rang out from next to the door. “Chloe were they always like this?”

Chole laughed. “Oh, no. This is tame. I can’t wait to see if it goes back to the relationship I remember. We’ll both need to stock up on band-aids if it does.”

“Bite me.” Gavin snapped while Eli smirked.

“She’s right, you know.” Eli turned and walked to the door. “Chloe, we should be going. I have a new project to work on. And an apology—a proper one with a bow on it—to draft.”

“Did I say that?” Gavin tried to think back to the fight. “Because if not, you’ve obviously gone off the deep end and should probably be taken out of society—oh, wait, you already did that.”  
  
“You are still the little bitch I remember. Oh, thank god.” Eli and Chloe both nodded goodbye as Nines opened the door. “I’ll call you when we need you to come in and work with the new arm. Love you, baby bro.”

“Fuck off, asshole.” But Gavin didn’t bother to hide the grin.  After the door closed, Gavin sat back down on the couch. “OK. Glad that’s ove…. Wait, did I just have a civil conversation with my brother?”

“That did not fit the definition of ‘civil’ in any way, shape or form. But for you, I guess you did.” Nines sat next to Gavin. “I was impressed.”

“OK, today goes down in my “I’m living in the Twilight Zone’ memories. I think I’ve had enough. What about you?”

“I was just happy to see you interact with your brother. You two are strange beings.”

“If your creator is strange, what does that say about you?” Gavin smirked, closing his eyes and leaning back on the couch.

“That I’m lucky I came out of the process with so few kinks.” Nines’s deadpan delivery sent Gavin into a laughing fit that had him doubled over and choking on laugher.

Catching his breath, Gavin sat back up. “Best line delivery ever.” Pressing his head to Nines’s shoulder, Gavin smiled.

Nines grinned down at Gavin, but Gavin could see that he was only partially happy. _I wonder what’s wrong? Maybe he’s bored. He is an advanced detective prototype._

“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask: Don’t you want to go back to work? I mean, I’m interesting, don’t get me wrong, but I would figure you’d want to be back at work soon.” Gavin looked up at Nines, and pressed closer as if trying to become part of the android.

“Gavin, I’m not leaving you again anytime soon. I don’t know that I’ll be able to handle that.” Nines wrapped his arms around Gavin, pulling him uncomfortably close.

“I know that I’m not someone who should criticize anyone having unhealthy comping mechanisms, but Nines, that’s not healthy for you. Anyways, I didn’t mean right now.” Closing his eyes, and cherishing being held, Gavin mumbled. “It’ll be good in the end.”

Nines didn’t say anything, relaxing his arms a bit. Gavin flipped on the TV, and the two simply relaxed on one of the calmest days they’d had since this entire debacle began. Using a laser pointer, Gavin directed Luna and Donkey to run in circles, and then put it down when the cats curled up next to the couch.

“Do you know when I’ll be needed to testify against…. them?” Gavin asked, feeling the tension in Nines skyrocket.

“No. And if we’re lucky, they won’t need you.” Nines reached for Gavin’s hand, and held it with both of his. “Even if they do, you can testify elsewhere in the building. I don’t want you to have to get close to her, ever again.”

“Nines, I don’t want to see her; but if I need to, I have to see them. If they go free—which is nearly impossible at this point, but still—they could kill someone next time. Hell, they probably should’ve killed me.”  Phantom pain ricocheted up and down Gavin’s arm, remembering how the axe fell. Nines’s arms tightened around him, as Gavin continued. “If there is no one who stops them, they will go after anyone.”

“Gavin. Enough of the self-sacrificial bullshit. You don’t have to see them—or her again—even if you are needed to testify. If nothing else, they have the weapon used to assault you. I know they’ve got that. You don’t have to see them.”  
“Tin-can, you know better than that. They’ll need me to place Rian as the one who…” Sitting up, Gavin pushed away from Nines, gesturing to the lack of arm.

“I don’t want you hurt. That’s all. I know that you might have to see her. I just don’t want you…. damn it, it’s too soon.” Nines pulled Gavin to him, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

Pressing against Nines’s cheek, Gavin pushed air through his nose. “I know.” Tears leaked down his cheeks. “I never want to have to deal with her—them—again. Her mostly. One seemed regretful, and I kind of think that maybe the other guy and Rian were screwing? I’m not entirely sure. It just seems like the type of thing someone high on sex would do. ‘yes, dear, I’ll help you stop the anti-androids as long as you keep having sex with me.” Gavin’s voice slipped into a high falsetto, which had Nines simultaneously laughing and pushing Gavin away.   


“RA9. You’re banned from doing that around me again anytime soon.” Nines scanned Gavin, making him squirm. “You said one of them seemed…remorseful? Was it one of the men?”  
Gavin tilted his head slightly. “Yeah….why?”  
“When I…found…you, one of the assailants was keeping pressure on your wound to make sure you didn’t bleed out.” Nines looked away. “He got a plea deal to give up the other two.”

Gavin felt the tears that had dried up start again. “Ooh….Ok. Wow. I…I didn’t…how?”  
“They needed the names and serial numbers of the androids who did this to you. I protested, loudly. But he did give us useful information.” Nines’s LED flashed, circling an orange-red.

Feeling the tears starting to fall, Gavin pulled himself back. “I’m going to go shower.”

“Are you…” Nines started to ask, but Gavin cut him off.

“OK? No, I’m not. But I want to be alone to process this.” Nines’s arm caught Gavin as he started to walk to the bathroom.

“OK. I’ll stay here, if you want?” Nines sounded uncertain, but Gavin didn’t feel it in him to talk at the moment. Nodding, he walked to the bathroom, shut the door and slumped against it.

_God. What if he comes back? He seemed remorseful, but what if that was a show?_ Panic had Gavin standing, turning on the water, and then pacing the small bathroom floorspace.

As the water began to steam—two or so minutes later—logic attempted to reasserted itself. _It’s unlikely that he’d be able to strike again—and not with the same tactics as last time. It’ll be OK._

Panic came back, full force. _That’s not to say that others who agree with them wont’ attack.  And given that they took you out—easily, at that—you need to be prepared. Gav, it’s going to be risky to do anything at all._

Panic, adrenaline and fear all tightened his stomach, his lungs. Climbing under the spray, Gavin attempted to think of anything else. “Think of Luna. Think of Donkey. It’s OK.”

_No, no it’s not. It’s not OK. They’ll come for you. Others are going to agree with the sentiment. After all, if they think they can’t get justice in the courts, vigilantism is the next best option. And the only reason they didn’t get away with it this time was because you are a cop. They will try again. And you need to be able to defend yourself at that point. And maybe update the will…._

A knock sounded, waking Gavin back up to the world around him. “Yeah?”  
“You OK? You don’t normally try to use up all the hot water.” Nines voice was gentle.

“I haven’t been in here that long.” Gavin’s voice was high-pitched and rushed.

This time the door opened, and Nines poked his head in. “Yeah, you have been. It’s been an hour and a half. Are you OK?”

“Yeah. Totallyy. I’m fine.” Grinning—which nines immediately lifted an eyebrow at—Gavin tried to sound calm, cool and collected.

“You’re going to freeze soon. I’d suggest getting out, but that’s up to you.” Nines stepped back, closing the door.

A small spark warmed his gut. _Nines, you’re the best. I love you._

Stepping out of the shower, Gavin grabbed the towel and wrapped it around his hips.

Slipping out to the hallway, Gavin glanced around looking for Nines. _Huh. Must be in the bedroom._

Walking in, Gavin saw Nines sitting on the bed staring out at the setting sun. “Hey.”

“Hi. Wanna talk about whatever had you panicking so badly?” Nines kept looking out the window as he spoke.

_Not really? If there’s a way out of it, no. If I say I’m afraid of being at the mercy of an android—any android. I can’t feel that powerless again, but will that hurt you to hear?_ “Nah. I’m OK.” Sitting down on the same side of the bed, Gavin pulled his legs to his chest.

“Which is why you immediately took a defensive ‘I’m upset’ position. Gavin, what’s going on?” Nines slid over, wrapping an arm around Gavin, and tucked him under his chin.

“I…I don’t know. I’m scared, I guess.” Gavin whispered.

“Gavin. It’s OK. Nothing is going to happen. They’re going to jail.” Nines rubbed along Gavin’s spine, gently soothing.

“We both know that there are a thousand ways out of conviction. And it’s not just them we have to worry about now. Others might share the same opinion. And they might be a lot more extreme about it.” Gavin said, pressing his face against Nines’s neck. “What then?”  
“Well, there’s a possibility that could happen, but I doubt it. Besides, I’ll protect you.” Nines’s voice was calm as he stated it as if it were a given.

_You can’t know that for sure. Nines, they took you out last time._ “Nines…. I know that I can trust you with my life, but they took you out last time. What happens if they do it again?”   
“They won’t. I will protect you.” Nines said, sitting up straighter.

Shutting his mouth, Gavin stood up and walked to the closet to pull out PJs. Throwing them on, Gavin dropped back down into Nines’s arms. “I don’t want to deal with the trial or anything else relating to the case right now. Can we focus on dinner and then pretend the world doesn’t exist?”

“Sure.” Nines wrapped his arm around Gavin once again. “That sounds good.”

The rest of the night passed quickly, and Gavin soon found himself falling asleep on the couch.  They’d ended up with Gavin resting on Nines’s chest as the had a movie going on in the background.   
“Gav? Time for bed.” Nines placed his hand on Gavin’s shoulder, gently pressing on it to get Gavin’s attention.

Glancing at his phone, Gavin sighed as he saw it was only 9:45. “I guess. Are you headed into work tomorrow?”

“Nope. I’m staying with you until you’re back on your feet.” Nines said, sitting up and dislodging Gavin.

Gavin shook his head. “If we’re not going into work, I don’t see the point of going to bed.”

“It’s better to maintain a sleep schedule, so when you go back to work it’ll be easy to get back into the habit.”  Nines yawned, for no other reason except to get Gavin to yawn. “You’re tired, too. After all, you’re yawning.”

“You know yawning is contagious, you ass.” Gavin mumbled, yawning again. “I’m not super tired. If you need to power down, you can. I’m gonna stay up.”

“I don’t need the schedule. You sure you want to stay up?” Nines asked, standing to stretch before walking to the hallway.

“Yeah.” Gavin said, leaning against the couch. Luna—noting the continued and unexpected presence of her owners—jumped up meeping her way onto Gavin’s chest.

Running his hands over her fur, Gavin watches as Nines vanishes down to the bedroom. “Yeah, I think I’ll stay here.” Whispering to Luna, Gavin holds her close to his heart. Swatting at his nose, Luna purred.

Nines returned with a blanket. Handing it to Gavin, he sat back down on his spot.

Nothing was said, and nothing was necessary. Relaxing against Nines, Gavin let himself check out mentally as a TV show—on low volume—soothed him. Eventually, he found himself unable to keep his eyes open.

Blinking, one moment he was watching some inane soap opera—and the next, Rian’s evil grin stood over him, white hands once again holding the axe. Wiggling, Gavin found that he wasn’t entirely tied down. His right hand was free. Throwing up his arm to protect himself, he was able to roll out of the blade as it thunked down into the wood, caring an inch into it. Reaching, he freed himself, and trying to flee, Gavin scrambled to escape the axe as it grew.

Rian’s hands caught him, holding him over a sudden cliff. Cory and Nate join her hands, dragging him back. Fighting, Gavin struggles, heart racing.

Eventually, Nines’s voice breaks through the haze of panic and fear.

“Gavin. Gavin, it’s OK. Wake up. It’s OK.” Slowly, Gavin realized that Nines was keeping him from falling off the couch.

Shaking, Gavin pulled himself back up onto the couch with Nines help.

Sitting up, Gavin pulled in deep breath after deep breath as he tried to shake the terror and fear.

“Gavin, shhhh…. It’s OK.” Nines held onto Gavin, rocking him gently.

“She was there. Her hands…no skin…all white. I couldn’t fight her. The axe just kept getting bigger.” Shaking, Gavin pressed harder against Nines.

“Shh. She’s not here. She’ll never get to you again.” Nines continued rocking him, pressing gentle kisses to Gavin’s forehead, and cheeks. “Shhh.”

“I hate this. I hate feeling unable to do anything. I couldn’t get away from her. I wouldn’t be able to get away from another android if I needed to. I don’t know what to do.” Shuddering, Gavin felt the cold holding him hostage slowly vanish as Nines held him.

“She won’t come here again. It’s OK. Have you been having these nightmares for awhile?” Nines asked, slowly letting Gavin go as he calmed down. “Is this why you didn’t want to sleep?”

“They only started when we got back here. So, not long, but enough that I don’t want to sleep.” Nightmare fading, Gavin pulled out of Nines’ arms. “I’ll grab something to drink and then be back.”  
“Mmmm.” Nines hummed, watching Gavin with eagle eyes as he rose and walked to the kitchen.

Taking everything in steps, Gavin poured himself a glass of apple juice, chugged it, then poured another. Grabbing the glass, he walked back out. Nines seemed to be anxiously awaiting him to come back, but the second he did, Nines went back to his usual resting bitch face. _Am I imagining things? Or is he having as many issues with this entire situation as I am?_

Turing the TV back on—and once again at near muted volume—Gavin pressed against Nines. “I’m probably going to fall asleep again, and panic. I’m sorry.”  
“Maybe talking to someone would help?” Nines suggested, and Gavin snorted.

“Pass. I’d rather had the nightmares.” Snuggling down, Gavin closed his eyes. “Night.”  
“I’m not gonna drop this, but OK.” Nines held onto Gavin. Gavin slipped into an exhausted sleep, blackness covering his mind until the morning.

When his phone alarm when off—at six AM—Gavin slammed it off and curled back into Nines.  Quickly, he fell back asleep.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First thing: This is a long one. Thanks for being patient, guys! :-)  
> Second: For those of you who didn't grow up with strange parents, what Gavin and Eli speak is called "Pig Latin." Basically, take the first letter of each word, and move to end. After that, add an 'a' or 'ay' sound to it.  
> So,  
> Really becomes eally-ray  
> Bite becomes ite-bay  
> me becomes e-may.  
> If this doesn't make any sense......sorry! I'll translate what they say in the comments if not enough people get it.

Then, his phone rang at 10 AM. Groaning, he reached over, picked it up and didn’t bother to hide the exhaustion in his voice. “’ello?”

“Gavin, it’s Connor. We need Nines at the precinct, and he’s avoiding all my messages.” Connor’s voice was calm. “Can you get through to him?”  
“Give ‘ a second.” Putting his phone down, Gavin reached over, shaking Nines. “Hey. Y’u.”

Nines opened one eye. “I take it Connor called you?”  
“Yeah. Dude, don’t ignore work and what basically counts as your sibling because of this.” Gruff, Gavin picked up the phone. “I’ll do my best to send him to you.”

“Thanks. Feel better so I can piss you off soon, OK?” Connor seemed overly cheerful for what felt like the very early morning.

“Yeah, yeah.” Hanging up, Gavin turned back to Nines. “Go.’  
“No.” Nines said, sitting up and looking away from Gavin. “You still need help doing some basic functions and are having a hard time walking.”  
“Nines, I swear to you that I will not move beyond the bathroom and here. Go. I’m ok.”

Nines sighed. “I don’t want to. Gavin, I don’t want you out of my sight.”  
“Again, Nines. Not healthy.” Gavin said, standing. “I think I’ve regained quite a bit of my balance. You don’t have to worry.”

“You say you’re balancing well—and your physical balance might be fine—but you don’t get to lecture me about anything that isn’t ‘mentally healthy’ because you’re the one having nightmares.” Nines’s laser sharp gaze swung to meet Gavin’s.

Feeling a hot flush flood his chest, Gavin felt anger pushing up again. “Shut up and go to work, will you?”

“Gavin.” Nines’s voice took on the warning tone. “Don’t push.”  
“Nines, please. Trust me. I’ll be OK.” Gavin pleaded, sitting stiffly on one side of the couch. “They’re in jail, right?”

Nines looked at Gavin, confused. “They are.”  
“Then you know I’ll be OK.” Gavin said, sending a pleading gaze Nines’s way.

“Gav… I just, it’s just that…I don’t want to leave you. The last time one of us left, I found you bleeding out, in pain and it scared me.”

“Nines, I’m OK. Besides, I’m not the only person who needs you.” Moving to kneel in front of Nines, Gavin took his hand.

“You’re the only one I want to be with right now.” Nines flushed along his cheekbones, and Gavin saw tears welling up. “I don’t want to risk losing you again. I was almost too late, last time.”  
“OK, here’s the deal.” Gavin lunged forward, wrapping his arms and pressing Nines’ face into his neck. “You go, and once you get back, we need to talk. Neither of us stop until we work this out. Does that sound better? No lies, no half-truths. We talk.”

“I still don’t want to leave.” Nines whispered, holding onto Gavin tightly. “I still see you bleeding when I blink.”

“Nines…” Saying nothing more, Gavin pulled one of Nines’s hands from around his waist, and pressed it to his heart. “Do you feel this?”

“Your heart beat? Yes, I do.” Nines sent Gavin a confused glare. “Why?”  
“Anytime you think of that moment, remember this sensation instead. My heart is beating, I’m here. I’m OK. You pulled me out.” Tilting Nines’s chin, Gavin pressed his lips to Nines. Whispering against them, Gavin pressed his tongue along the crease of Nines’s lips, asking for entry. After a few seconds, Nines took the kiss deeper. Nines moved his hand to the small of Gavin’s back, pulling him closer.

Heat rose into Gavin’s stomach. Letting out a bit of a moan, Gavin pulled back to take a deep breath. “You’re trying to distract me, aren’t you?”  
Nines smiled, not bothering to lie. “Is it working?”  
“Fuck you, yes. But, I told Connor you were on your way….” Gavin started to pull back from Nines. “Go.”

“Are you a hundred percent certain that you’ll be OK?” Nines asked, staring at Gavin. “Don’t lie. I don’t want to leave unless you’re certain.”

Maintaining eye contact, Gavin nodded. “I’ll be fine. Go.”

Grumbling, Nines stood. “When I get home, we talk.”

Nodding, Gavin watched as Nines vanished into the hallway, only to come back about fifteen minutes later fully dressed. Walking to the door, Nines opened it, looked back to Gavin, before saying “I love you,” and leaving.

Gavin promptly flopped back over on the couch and pulled the blankets back up over him. Donkey and Luna both jumped to curl on him, and the household went back to sleep.

Waking up, Gavin felt peace reign around him. Nothing was wrong, it was quiet. He had the time off, and he could do whatever he wanted. This contentment lasted as long as it took Gavin to shower, eat, and watch exactly two episodes of some show on his tablet.

“Oh, god, I’m bored.” Glancing wistfully at his console, Gavin wished for a one-handed controller. “I need a challenge.”

Picking up his phone, Gavin pulled up a game. Given that his phone could be operated with ‘one hand’ it stood to reason that the games would be playable with one hand.

Eventually, he settled for an old classic—Bejeweled. Blasting through level after level, Gavin found himself surprised when a phone call interrupted his game. “Damn it, I had that level.” Answering the phone, he grumbled under his breath.

“Hello?”  He asked, having not recognized the number.

“Hi, Gav. It’s me. I’ve got a mockup of a prototype, and a sleeve I’d need you to try on. Can you come to my house?” Elijah’s voice came through the phone clearly.

“Oh…. Um, I need to let Nines know, but then I can?” Gavin said, nearly fumbling the phone.

“Cool. Call me back when you figure out everything.” Eli hung up milliseconds later, leaving Gavin with his head spinning.

“God, back to the Twilight Zone, I guess.” Gavin dialed Nines, trying to figure out how his life had gone in such a sharp left turn from normal.

“Gavin, are you OK?” Nines’s voice was panicked. “What’s up?”  
“Whoa, calm down. I’m fine. Eli called. He wants me to head over there, said he had a prototype for me to check out and something about a sleeve?” Gavin said, trying to speak in as calm a voice as possible.

“Oh. And you want to head over there? That’s fine, I can swing by and give you a ride there?” Nine said, and Gavin could hear the keys in his hands jingle.  
“Nah. Stay at work. You’re probably needed, given the fact that they called you in. I’ll bug him for a ride.” Gavin smiled. “Besides, maybe he’ll use the really—really—nice muscle car and I can drool over it.”

“You have one of the best machines at home and yet you still cheat on me with something that can’t talk back.” Nines’s snarky attitude made Gavin grin.

“Yeah, it doesn’t talk back. That’s the best thing. I think I should be home before you, but if not I’ll call?” Gavin smiled at Nines’s reply.

“If I’m home before you are, I’m allowed to come and get you. And believe me, I will embarrass you in front of your brother. And record it so everyone at the DPD can enjoy it.” Nines sighed. “I’ll see you later. I love you, be safe.”

Hanging up, Gavin stood, and moved to the bedroom to change clothes. Throwing on a pair of jeans and a semi-presentable T-shirt—before changing to his oldest, most comfortable one—Gavin dialed Eli.

“Hey, Gav. You on your way?” Eli asked, sounding distracted.

“Kind of a problem there. One, I can’t drive right now, and two, Nines has the car. So…..pick me up?”

“Sure. Be there in like 40 or so minutes.” Eli hung up, and Gavin sat down, playing more Bejeweled until he heard the knock on his door.

Opening the door, Gavin grinned at Eli. “What, do you have a press event after this? Those look like the ‘I need to look official’ outfits you used to wear to the galas all the time.”

It was true. Eli was in a button-up shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks.

“Not really, it’s something for later.” Eli motioned to Gavin. “Come on. Let’s go. I want to see how this works for you.”

“OK.” Gavin felt something uneasy set in his gut. _Maybe it’s just because I haven’t been around Eli in awhile._ “Let’s go.”

Following Eli to his car, Gavin continued to feel uneasy. “Hey, Eli. No one at your house is a reporter or anything, right?”

“No, there aren’t. What do you take me for?” Eli asked, seemingly insulted.

“I…sorry. My bad.” Gavin said, leaning against the passenger’s side window.

Conversation started and stopped, awkward and formal as they rode through to Eli’s house.

“Sooo…. What have you been up to this entire time?” Eli asked, focusing on the ride.  
“Mostly work. It’s been kind of nuts since the revolution.” Gavin said, staring out the window. “You?”  
“Same, I suppose. My work has been under more scrutiny since then, too. I had no idea that my creation would deviate.”   Eli said, looking out the window. “I never imagined that…”

“That you’d be the creator of an entire new…race?” Gavin asked, watching as cars passed. “I can’t say I’d imagined it either.”  
“But something tells me that you’re glad they did.” Eli said, glancing at Gavin out of the corner of his eyes.

“What do you mean, Eli?” Gavin said, modulating his tone. _Not sure where he’s going with this._

“Um… just that you and Nines seem like…well, he was super protective of you, and you seemed to cling to him. It just looked like you two were together.” Eli said, focusing straight out the window.

 _I mean, I guess Eli would have to be blind not to notice. And he’s not blind when it comes to androids, or me._ “We are.” Gavin winced at his frozen tone but didn’t continue.

“I….I just, I never saw you as the type to go for androids.” At Gavin’s glare, Eli cleared his throat. “I’m not doing well at this, am I?”

“No, not really.” Gavin said, returning to stare out the window.

The rest of the ride was filled with a mix of pop music and commercials as Gavin stared out the window. Reaching Elijah's house, Gavin felt huge relief as he saw that there weren't any reporters waiting at the gate. "I thought that you were going to have reporters here." Gavin said, and then laughing at Elis offended expression.

"I wouldn't do that to you. Besides, do you think I want people over? " Eli smiled at Gavin’s snort. Walking inside, Gavin gasped as how clean and different the entry room had become. When he'd last been at Elis house-- somewhere around seven or eight years ago -- the house had been decorated by mismatched pieces that he and Eli had gone to the thrift shop for. Shoes had cluttered the entry way, and the living room had been in a state of perpetual chaos because Gavin often stayed with his brother rather than going home. 

"Wow, Eli. This place looks...adult. What happened? To all the stuff we got at the thrift store?" Gavin smiled as he ran his hand over the edge of the glass table next to the door.

"It’s in my lab. I didn't want to get rid of it, but it wasn't appropriate for the public areas of a CEOs house." Eli flashed a self-deprecating grin at Gavin. "Besides, I basically lived in my lab up until about a year and a half ago."

 "Why am I not surprised?" Gavin followed Eli to his lab and dropped down into said couch that was close to the smaller nook off to one side of two rows of table lining the center of the room.

"Smart ass. I need you over here." Gesturing to a table, Eli moved away to grab some small black spandex item and a long box.

 "Fiiiinnneeee." Standing up, Gavin moved to the table and leaned against it. "This ok?"

 "On the table, Gavvy. I know you've sat on tables before. Hop up." Eli motioned to the table.

"Umm....kinda need both arms, but I'll try." Hopping up, Gavin maneuvered as best he could. Be ended half sprawled across the table before righting himself. Only to find Eli with his phone out, recoding him. "You damn well better delete that." Gavin growled.

Eli laughed and pocketed his phone. "It’s going straight to the personal black mail folder."

 "Asshole." Gavin grumbled. "Can we just try the arm?"

"Of course." Handing Gavin the spandex cloth thing, Eli smiled. "You'll need to put this on under your shirt."

 Unfolding the garment, Gavin found an oddly shaped 3/4th sleeved T-shirt with the right sleeve sewn shut. "Ummm, What is this?" He asked, pulling off his own T-shirt and tossing it a few inches away.

"It’s a sensor shirt, as well as being an elastic sleeve. It'll learn how you move your arm and begin to predict what your movements based on its past data bank. The longer you wear that, the better it's predictions. While the arm has some already programmed movements, this will customize the arm. And it'll add a layer between your arm and the prosthetic." _Seems plausible, I guess._

Throwing on the garment, Gavin shifted uncomfortably. "Next?"

"Next we try this on and see how it fits." Pulling out the prosthetic, Eli waved it at Gavin.

Seeing the white plating, Gavin felt panic ride up in his but before he felt his eyes rolling back as he instinctively tried to back up, away from it. Falling off the edge of the table, Gavin fell off, moving until his back hit a wall.  Curling into a ball, he did his best to protect himself. The next thing he knew, Eli knelt next to him, hugging him and humming something.

 _Is that..._ "the lullaby my mom used to hum? Whatsit called, [Sleepsong](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yQpU_73Dv0)?" Gavin felt the stress slide away from him.

"Yeah. Sorry, it was the first thing that I could think of to call you down. Jesus, you scared me when you basically launched yourself backwards." Sitting down next to Gavin, Eli leaned back against the wall. "Soooo....struggling sucks. Want to talk about it?"

"No." Gavin groaned, pressing his forehead into his knees. "Just shove the damn thing on. The. Sleeve. And. I’ll. Just. Test. It.”

“Gavin, that’s probably not going to work. What set you off?” Eli said, Pulling Gavin to his side. “I swear, it doesn’t leave here.”

“It’s nothing. Just put the damn arm on.” Gavin said, looking away.

“It’s not nothing. That was a panic reaction, and I think it has something to do with your recent… experiences. Gavin, I want to help. Please, let me try.” Eli said, holding his brother as he began to tremble.

“It’s nothing. I’m fine. I’ll be OK. Just, I want to go home soon. Please, put the arm on.” Gavin felt Eli sigh.

“OK. But, if you panic again I’m going to ask again.” Standing, Eli reached down and pulled Gavin to his feet. “OK?”  
“Yeah yeah yeah.” Gavin grumbled, moving back over to the table, maneuvering up and looking away.

“OK. I’m going to attach the arm and support system. Once it’s on, I’ll have you do a few motions. We can take it off after that.” Eli said, picking up the arm. “Ready?”  
Gavin stared resolutely away from his brother. “As I’ll ever be.”  
“OK. You might be a bit uncomfortable. With your mind freaking out as badly as it did when it lost the arm, the nerves might be slightly sensitive. I’ve got the sensitivity down pretty low, but it can go lower.” Eli said, carefully sliding on the arm.

Gavin felt nothing but weight. “I’m supposed to feel it?” He asked, kind of confused.

“No, I haven’t flipped the switch yet. Here we go, three…” Flipping the switch, Eli winced at Gavin’s whimper.

“You…” Eli asked as Gavin held up a finger.

“Give me a second to adjust.” _Ow. Motherfucker. OW. Deep breaths and swearing Gav._ “Shit, shit, shit. Fuck, ow. Why? God damnit.” Pulling in a deep breath, Gavin sighed. “OK. What do you need?”

“Um…. I’m going to have you think about moving your arm and see if it works. After that, you can take it off.” Eli’s worried tone shook Gavin. “I don’t want you to go into another panic.”  
Steeling himself, Gavin glanced down at his new arm. Its skin tone was close to his own now. “I’m OK.”

Eli watched Gavin, trying to assess if he was telling the truth. “OK. Form a fist.”

“How?” Gavin asked, watching Eli’s face.

“You already did. Look.” Eli’s smile is wide.

Looking down, Gavin saw that his hand had indeed formed a fist. “I didn’t…. I didn’t think about it beyond what you told me.”

“That’s great. That means that you’re taking to the arm. OK, Let’s try something else. Your birthday gift is hidden somewhere around the lab. It’s on a shelf. Can you find it?” Eli grinned, obviously pleased.

“What is this, I-Spy?” Glancing around, Gavin noted a brightly wrapped box with a bow on it on a shelf to the left side of the lab. “OK. I see it.” Reaching out, Gavin held up his left hand for Eli to help pull him off the ground.

“Oh, forgot to fasten the strap on your arm.” Eli said, motioning to a strap that Gavin hadn’t noticed.

“I thought it would stay on because of my elastic sleeve?”  Gavin asked, fasting the strap.

“Well, yes, but it’s also basically nerves that can be touched where it’s attached to your arm. I doubt you want to risk pulling it off, considering that elastic sleeve is basically nerves. It would feel like pulling your arm off again.” Eli said, grabbing Gavin’s hand and pulling him up. “Now, go grab the box. Try to use the arm, see how it works with motion.”

“OK.” Gavin said, glancing toward the box.  Walking over, he easily reached up and grabbed the package. “Now?”

“What do you think, Goof? Open it.” Eli smiled. “That’s the point of a birthday gift.”

Glaring, Gavin carefully grabbed a corner before simply ripping the paper off. “Whoa. Eli. I….” Pulling out the Blu-Ray set of his old favorite anime and the pride flag it was wrapped in, Gavin felt the ability to speak leave him momentarily. Looking up, he met Eli’s gaze head-on.  
“I know what I said to you so long ago was wrong. I know it. I want you to know that I am not ashamed to have a gay sibling. I love you.” Eli said, watching Gavin who was dumbstruck. “What I said was because I felt pressured, that my group wanted you gone because you were an embarrassment. And I started to believe it. And I…. I regret it with everything I have in me.”

Leaning against a table, Eli continued. “I know that you faced untold discrimination, and that you didn’t need it from me. From a family member who should’ve supported you. I shouldn’t have let them make me ashamed of you. I’m so, so sorry.”

“I….” Gavin broke eye contact, looking down. Wrapping one arm around himself, he rubbed his right shoulder, “I.. I don’t know what to say.”

“I don’t know what to say either, so do you want to pretend that none of this is wrong and continue testing the arm?” Eli coughed, hiding the nervous laughter.

“Sure. Let’s do that.” Gavin said, leaning against the table.

Running through a few routine tests, Gavin and Eli mostly stuck to silence beyond basic communications. “OK, Try moving each finger individually.” Doing so, Gavin felt himself smile. “Wow. It’s amazing. It’s almost like I didn’t….” _lose my arm._

Wisely ignoring the pause, Eli nodded. “Yeah, I’m a genius. And I have one condition for you to take this baby home tonight.”  
“That is?” Gavin asked, confused.

“What freaked you out so bad? I don’t want it to happen again. You could risk hurting yourself. Seriously, you basically scooted off and flipped over a table to get away. I’m not a doctor, but that seems…. Not healthy. Like, at all.” Eli smiled. “I promise to buy you dinner at that one place you love if you answer.”

“You mean Texas De Brazil? Hell yes!” Gavin grinned, forgetting the catch.

“Well?” Eli asked, expectantly.

“Well what?” Gavin asked, confused.

“What scared you so badly?” Eli said, walking over and throwing his arm around Gavin’s shoulders.

“I….It’s the plating on the arm. When… she swung…. When I was attacked, the attacker pulled her skin back to her forearms, and I sa…w…my….blood…on..her…..” Gasping for air, Gavin dropped to the ground, hyperventilating.

“Easy!” Dropping down in front of Gavin, Eli knelt in front of him. “Is that what scared you? The plating?”  
“Just….the white. It’s so white. And it doesn’t stain.” Gavin said, looking down at his new hand, as the skin started to peel back.

Throwing his gaze away from the hand, Gavin felt Eli reach over and flip the switch, pulling the arm off without pain and putting it out of Gavin’s eyesight.

“OK. So we’ll change the plating. We’ll make it black, silver—hell, rainbow if you want.” Eli said, cupping Gavin’s chin and turning him to face his brother head on. “We can fix this. You don’t have to be uncomfortable with your new arm. It’s OK.”

Pulling in a much-needed deep breath, Gavin felt himself relax a little. “OK. That would be much better. Black, probably. Hell, If I could do an etching or something in rainbow that’d be cool…. But I’d want it up by the shoulder, so no one could see it.”

“Hell yeah! What do you want, your name?” Eli asked, smiling.

“No, I’m not sure yet… Maybe something that rises from the dead….a zombie…vampire, nah…what about a phoenix?” Gavin asked, and noted Eli’s smirk. “What?”  
“Nothing, it’s just kinda cliché.” Eli said, standing. “Anyway, I owe you dinner. Wanna go now?”

“Um…actually, I think Nine and I had a night planned. Some other time? I do want the food.” Gavin’s eyes narrowed at Eli’s aww.

“You two are so cute. How did you two meet?” Eli asked, smiling.

“It’s a long story. Do I still get to take the arm home tonight, or do you need more time on it since you need to change the plating?” Gavin asked, rubbing at the stump. A few moments with the arm had been nice, almost making Gavin feel normal again.

“It shouldn’t take long to re-do the plating. I have a lot of stuff around here.” Eli moved away to the one of the shelves that lined the walls, and pulled down a box. Rooting through it, he pulled out plating of various colors. “If you want, you can watch some of the show while I finish this up.”

“Cool.” Walking over to the couch, Gavin pulled the plastic wrap off the box and pulled out the first DVD case. Popping it open, he placed the disc into the DVD player and began to fall in love with ice skating once again.

About half-way through the sixth episode, Gavin felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. Leaning over to one side, while do as little physical movement as possible, Gavin continued watching, answering with a distracted “Hello?”  
“Gavin. I’m here. Would you let Eli know to let me… oh, never mind, apparently Chloe was waiting for me.”

“Uh-huh.” Gavin answered, distracted as he watched the routines.

“Wow. It’s like you got lobotomized. What’s going on?” Nines asked .

“Yep.” Gavin answered, not really listening.

Nines’s voice faded to the background of Gavin’s mind as he continued watching. He only really started listening when Nines said the weirdest shit.

“Oh, and I found Narnia. Aslan asked me to rule over the kingdom, but I declined because I had an appointment in the Twilight Zone and I had to make it on time. I needed to serve justice.” Nines’s voice no longer came from the phone, but from behind the couch.

Looking up, Gavin smiled. “Wow. I would’ve taken the kingdom.”

Nines laughed, reaching down to tilt Gavin’s head back to kiss him. “Of course, that’s the part you listen to.”

“Yeah.” Turning his mind back to the show, Gavin once again zoned out until Nines’s hand came down into his field of view. “Hey!”

“It’s amazing. Your awareness vanishes as if you’ve turned off your surroundings.” Nines stated, laughing. “

Blushing, Gavin hit pause on the show, and then—on further consideration—stopped the show, ejecting the disc.

“OK, I get it.” Gavin grumbled, pulling the disc out and putting it away. “Sorry. What were you saying?”  
“Not much, just filling you in about work.” Nines smiled, softly. “It was nice seeing you not panicked.”  
Blushing, Gavin averted his gaze. “I do love that show.”  
“Eli has it on DVD? That’s kind of strange, isn’t it, when you can stream almost everything?” Nines asked, walking around to hook an arm around Gavin’s waist.

“I mean, I guess, but it’s a birthday gift.” Gavin smiled. “I always love free stuff.”  
Nines rolled his eyes. “I know.”  Hugging Gavin closer, he asked. “How’s the arm construction going?”

Eli’s voice rang out, this time. “It’s done. You two are cute.”

Nine glanced toward Eli, taken aback. “Thank…you?”

Eli smiled. “Sorry, but you two are.”

“OK.” Nines said, keeping one arm around Gavin.

Gavin gently extricated himself from Nines’s grip, and walked over to look at the arm.

“No white plating. All black. Look OK?”

The arm—true to Eli’s word—was black chrome that shone. “Yeah, it does. Thank you so much.” Gavin said, as his throat closed. _I…I don’t have to give up police work. I don’t have to live crippled._ Reaching over, he pulled Eli into a tight hug.

Eli—despite being shocked at first—wrapped and held tight to his younger brother. “It’s OK, Gav. You don’t owe me a thank you. I’m just glad you’re OK. And that you’re still here for me to annoy and bribe.” Eli’s eyes watered and spilled over.

Gavin gripped tighter, not saying anything. Nothing needed to be said. A few moments passed, and Gavin pulled away slightly. “OK, let me put on the arm. I kind of liked being normal again for a few moments.”

Eli squoze, and then released Gavin. “Ok, Ok.” Tears fell down his cheeks, over his panicked, maniacal grin. “I’m so glad you’re alive.”

“Sure you are, Joker.” Reaching over, Gavin grabbed the arm, struggling to put it on.

“Here, let me help.” Eli said, and then nodded to Nines. “You’ll probably want to learn how to help.”

Nines nodded, walked over and began to observe.

Slipping his arm into the locking mechanism, Gavin felt the weight slightly pull him off balance. Helping to fasten the strap, Gavin made sure it was closed before reaching up to switch it on. As the arm came on, Gavin felt the unbalance feeling go away.

Stretching his arm out, he smiled. “God, this is better.”

Nines smiled. “Wanna arm wrestle?”

Rolling his eyes, Gavin wrapped his arms around Nines’s waist. “Nope.”

Pressing his face to Nines’s chest, Gavin felt normal.

“You do feel better,” Nines mumbled. “I’m so happy.” Holding him tight, Nines pressed his nose into Gavin’s hair.

“You two want some alone time, or…?” Eli asked, startling the two.

Gavin laughed. “Nah. I think it’s time I headed home. I’ll call you later? We can figure out the dinner thing later.”

Eli smiled. “Don’t be a stranger, Gav. I love you.”

“I-hay ove-lay ou-yay oo-tay.” Gavin mumbled, wrapping his arm around Nines.

“Ig-pay atin-lay? Eally-ray?” Eli asked, smirking.

“hut-Say p-uay.” Gavin grumbled.

Nines glanced between the two of them. “Wow, if that’s you trying to make it so others don’t understand you, that’s pathetic.”

“Ite-bay e-may. Sshole-Aay.” Gavin smiled as Nines laughed.

“Come on. We need to go. Eli, thank you.” Nines held out his hand to shake.

Taking it, Eli smiled. “You don’t owe me a thank you. I owe you one. You’ve apparently made my irritable little brother happy, after I pushed him out. Thank you.”

Nines’s smiled, but Gavin noticed the blue tinge on his neck. _Aww. He’s embarrassed. This is great._

Releasing Eli, Nines threw his arm around Gavin’s shoulder. “Let’s go.”

Eli led the two of them out of the lab, and back to the front door.

Eli smiled. “I’ll see you later. Feel free to come visit anytime. Your biotic signatures are in my security system, so you’ll only have to press your fingers into my door handle to get in.”

Gavin felt something bloom. “Bye.”

Swinging into the passenger’s seat, Gavin smiled. “Wow. I have a brother again.”

Nines smiled and started the car. Pulling out on to the road home, they let the silence go unchallenged.

Pulling up to the apartment, Gavin smiled. “I’m gonna pet the cats so much. It’s gonna be great.”  
Smiling, Nines just kept his mouth shut. Walking up to the apartment, Gavin and Nines held hands.

Unlocking the door, Gavin scooped up Luna, holding her up. “Merrreeeppp?” Luna asked, sniffing at Gavin’s new hand.

“Strange, huh, pretty girl? Soft girl.” Running his hand over her fur. “Soft angle baby girl who I love.”

 “So, do you want this in the blackmail folder?” Nines smiled, at Gavin’s playful glare.

“Oh, hush. It’s so weird to feel her fur through my fingers, and the fact that I think that is weird is strange.” Gavin rubbed his hand over her ears, while Donkey bumped his head into his leg. Placing Luna down, he picked up Donkey and placed him on his shoulder. “You two are the best.”  
“Wow. I’m chopped liver, apparently.” Nines grumbled, walking past.

Reaching over, Gavin grabbed Nines, and pulled Nines—as much as Nines allowed it—to him. Pressing his lips to Nines, Gavin felt awesome.

Nines blushed, thirium flooding his cheeks. “You are feeling better.”

Wrapping his arms around Nines, Gavin smiled. “Yep.”

Nines smiled. “I think we need to talk before anything else.”

“Geeze. Kill the mood.” Gavin grumbled, releasing Nines.

Moving to the kitchen, Gavin pulled down a glass for water.

After grabbing the glass, Gavin sat down at the table. “OK. Let’s get this out in the open. First, I love you.”

Nines’s LED flashed yellow. “I love you too? Where is this going?”  
“I wanted you to hear it before I went into the rest of the talk. I hate these talks, because I feel they always end up in yelling matches.” Gavin grumbled. “Do you want to talk about what you’ve been feeling?”  
“Gav….” Dropping down and reaching across the table and taking Gavin’s new hand in his. Cupping it in his, Nines stared at it. His skin pulled back, before Nines apparently remembered and slammed it back down. “I…that night is partial fragments of memory. When they took you, I remember flashes, moments of you looking for me, trying to get to me. You looked scared, and I wanted to fix that. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t get to you. And after the EMP went off, I went into an emergency reboot. I couldn’t fight it. When I woke up, you weren’t that, and I couldn’t track you. Connor and Hank stood over me, and they didn’t have you. I didn’t know where you were.”

Nines’s eyes flicked back and forth, as if he was reconstructing the moments. “I couldn’t find you. I didn’t know where you were. And I knew you were in danger. And I could do nothing.”

Grasping Nines’s hand, Gavin pulled back the skin. “I know. But I knew you’d find me.”  
“I’m glad you knew I could, but I didn’t. The preconstructions I had said otherwise. And I felt worthless. When we finally got a lead, I finally could do something. And… I suppose I went overboard. I ripped into neighbors, androids who’d heard something about this new splinter groups, anyone and everyone who might’ve had information. Because I knew I was running the risk of losing you.” Nines’s LED spun fire-truck red. “I was losing you.

He stopped talking, moved around the table, and pulled Gavin into his arms.

Feeling Nines’s  body temperature, Gavin realized that Nines hadn’t been breathing. “Hey, breath. Grab some cool thirium or something.”

Nines took a couple of deep breaths. “I can’t let you go…not right now.”  
“OK.” Gavin said, holding onto Nines. “I’m OK, and I’m right here.”  
Nines stayed silent for a few more moments. “I…when Maria came in, I felt like I had a chance to find you. And…. When…. I found you, I thought I was wrong. You were bleeding, and the one thing keeping you alive was one of your attackers. And that angered me. How could he do this and then act repentant? How could they hurt you? But I knew I had to get you to a hospital. Luckily, the ambulance was waiting, and took you away. Connor and Hank blocked me from doing anything to Nate, but god I wanted his head.”

Pulling away, Nines stood and walked to the window. “I was so scared that I was going to lose you. It was rough through the surgeries. And I didn’t know what I’d do if you were gone. Gavin, I love you. I can’t lose you. And I know that it isn’t entirely healthy to not want you out of my sight—and I know that’s how I’ve been acting—but I don’t know if I’ll ever get over the scare of losing you. It’s not that I don’t trust you… I just… RA9, I just.” Stopping, Nines sighed. “I just want you safe, happy, and with me. And I guess I don’t trust that I can keep you safe. And that scares me.”

Standing and moving over to Nines, Gavin wrapped his arms around him. “Nines, I want you to hold me for a second, OK?”

Nines wrapped his arms around Gavin without hesitation. “OK.”

“Am I still here?” Gavin asked, squeezing Nines’s middle.

“Yes.” Nines answered.

“Then you did save me, and you protected me. Maybe not in the way you expected, but you did it.” Gavin said, and watched Nines’s face contort in sadness.

“You were hurt, though.” Nines said, watching Gavin’s face.

Gavin felt some sadness creep over him. “I was. I am. And I’m still scared. Which is why I still panic. And why I want to figure out a way to defend myself. It will take me awhile to get over it.”

“Maybe a couns…” Nines said, only to be cut off by Gavin.

“I know. But, Nines, I am OK. You saved me. I love you.” Pulling back slightly, Gavin reached up, and brought Nines’s mouth close to his. Pressing his lips to Nines’, Gavin smiled. “I love you, you are my hero for saving me. You give me even more reason to love you.” He whispered against Nines’s lips.

“I… I love you, and I need reassurance that you’re still here. I want you to hold you, Gavin.” Nines whispered back, taking the kiss a little further.

“You have me, Nines.” Gavin responded, then pulled Nines to him, and slipping one of his hands up the back of Nines’s  shirt. “You have me. Let’s go. I want to hold you, too.”

They stumbled to the bedroom, and spent the rest of the night together, locked into each other’s loving arms.


	10. Chapter 10

Gavin didn’t remember going to sleep but waking up next to Nines was wonderful. Running his hand over his sleeping partners chest, he smiled. “I love you.” He whispered.

“Mmm…” Nines said, running his hands down his partners back to cup his ass in his hands.

Gavin laughed, then rolled away. “So, are you going to go back to work now?”

Nines smiled. “If they need me, they’ll call me in. Other than that, I don’t have to go in.”  
“But you’re not afraid of losing me again, are you?” Gavin asked, placing his hands on Nines’s chest.

“Gavin, I will always be afraid of losing you.” At Gavin’s started protest, Nines held up a finger. “I will let you out of my sight now. I know that it’s not practical to try and keep my eyes on you all the time. Although, I have to say I like the view right now.”

Gavin blushed, and rolled away. “Yeah, well, you’re pretty too, you gorgeous piece of plastic.”

Nines laughed. “Wow. Your brains are fried.”

Smiling, Gavin reached for Nines’s hands. “Nines?”

“Hmm?” He asked, smiling up at Gavin.

“I know how important the act of pulling skin back is for you….” Gavin said, watching Nines’s face. “I don’t want to be afraid of your touch. I don’t want to be afraid of something that’s important to you.”  
Nines frowned. “Gavin, I don’t blame you from being afraid. I understand.”  
“I know you understand.” Leaning down, Gavin pressed against Nines’s chest. “But I don’t want to be. Will you help me get over it?”  
Nines sighed, then nodded. “Of course, Gavin.”

They entwined once again.

The next couple of weeks passed quickly, Nines going into work as necessary and Gavin working with the physical therapy and training to fully work with his new arm.  After going over his defense countless times, Gavin knew what he was supposed to say, what was going to happen. Or, at least he was pretty sure he knew. The trial was at the end of the week, and Gavin did his best to avoid the thought of the trial.

The night before the trial, Gavin found himself antsy. Pulling out his old game console, he did his best to distract himself. _I have to face her tomorrow. I have to see her. What do I do if she attacks?_

Throwing on an old favorite horror/adventure game, Gavin created a new save file for the story mode—not that there was much of one, but any distraction would work at this point—and poured himself into it.

“Com’on. I know you’re out there, you piece of crap. Come around the corner and try it. I’ll blow your freaking face off.” Gavin said, and then jumping when the enemy did exactly that. “Fuck.”  
“Wow. You asked for it, didn’t you?” Nines smirked as Gavin threw himself back. “Hi, I’m home.”  
Gasping out panicked laughter, Gavin ground out. “Hi. Asshole. Good to see you too, please give me a heart attack.”  
“Hah. You wouldn’t die from that.” Walking over, Nines picked up the controller, and paused the game. “I take it you’re not handling the anticipation well?”  
“What do you mean?” Gavin asked, confused as to how Nines knew.

“Gavin, you only pull out your console when you’re worried about something. Normally, you pull out a horror game when you’re upset, because then you ‘actually have something to be afraid of.’” Nines walked over to the couch, sat down. Looking toward Gavin, he patted the seat beside him. “Com’on. Keep going. It’ll keep your mind off of things.”

Gavin snuggled into Nines’s side. “OK.” Taking the controller from Nines, Gavin kept playing.

The night passed, and Gavin found his nerves continuing to spike.  Walking into the kitchen—where Nines was going over documents for a case at the table—Gavin asked, “Would you mind going over the question they’ll ask me again?”  
Nines shook his head. “Gavin, you’re only working yourself up.” Wrapping his arms around Gavin, Nines pulled him down next to him. “I would like a second opinion on this, though.” Nines pointed to a case document. “Does this seem right to you?”

Leaning over Nines’s arm, Gavin glanced over the case, and nodded. “Yeah, that seems right to me. It would make sense if business partners got into a fight, and then one of them assaulted the other. Is there something that made you feel that wasn’t right?”

“No, it’s just that you have a perspective that I don’t. You often ‘feel’ if something is right or not. Given my programming, I tend to miss that.” Nines’s voice was self-deprecating.

Nines didn’t see the glance Gavin gave him. “Well, I mean, I think you’re perfect the way you are.” Gavin mumbled into Nines’s hair.

“Aww. You’re too cute.” Nines laughed as Gavin’s temperature rose. “Are you blushing?”  
“No.” Gavin vehemently denied. “Look, I’m going to shower and head to bed. Have fun with your files.”

Nines reached up, wrapped his arms around Gavin, and held tight for a second. “If you’re going to bed, I think it’s time to call it a night.”

Gavin shook his head. “It’s alright. I’m going to bed, so I don’t panic and try to find a flight to Tahiti in the next four hours.”  
“Well, if you do run, I’ll know where to start looking.” Nines called as Gavin moved to the shower. Unhooking his arm and taking off the elastic sleeve, Gavin tested the water as his thought ran rampant. _If she comes after me, I’ll need to move fast. Given that we’re in courtroom eight, there’s a door just off to the witness stand. I should be able to make it there if she tries anything. It’ll be OK._

Going through the motions, Gavin did his best to keep his mind on the routine tasks of cleaning himself. _It’s OK. Shampoo, body wash. That’s all. Tomorrow’s going to fucking suck, but you can get through it. They’ve been drilling you on the case the entire week, and then you’ll be done with this. She’ll go away. So, will the other two. IT’s OK._

Toweling off, Gavin moved to the bedroom where he pulled on PJS. _All you have to do is look presentable. That’s it, look presentable and tell the truth. Maybe I should check my clothes._

Moving to the closet, Gavin double-checked his ‘court’ clothing. A pair of black slacks, a long-sleeved button-up and his leather jacket. Of course, his clothes were there, ready and waiting. _See, it’s there. I’ll look OK… or so I hope. Maybe there’s something else that would look OK?_

Pawing through his clothes, Gavin did his best to try and figure out what would look OK—professional and pressed—while also being comfortable enough for him to wear for extended periods of time. _Man, I need to go through here and get rid of some of these things._

“Gavin?” Nines’s voice called from the doorway.

Glancing over, Gavin saw Nines leaning against the doorjamb. “What’s up?”  
“Weren’t you going to bed?” Nines asked, moving to sit down on the mattress. “Can’t sleep or are you letting the thoughts get to you?” Nines asked smiling at Gavin.

_God, you’re cute._ “Thoughts are getting to me. And I don’t know that they’ll go away if I go to sleep.”  
“Are you nervous?” Nines asked. “You’ve done this before. It’s the same, isn’t it?”  
Gavin shook his head. “No, it’s not. Normally, I’m the support. I tell them what happened to someone else. Now… it’s me who’s the victim. I… it’s just different.”

Moving to the bed, Gavin flopped down. “Nines, I don’t know, can we go do something? I don’t want to think about anything relating to the case and that’s what I’m going to do if I stay here.”

“It’s late, and you need to be ready for tomorrow. I think sleep would be the best option. Or maybe a movie or something we can do here.” Nines said, scooting on the mattress until he sat next to Gavin. “I know you’re frustrated. But you can do this.”

Rolling to the edge of the bed, Gavin said nothing as he rose, put on Pjs and then dropped back down to curl up to sleep. Placing the sensor shirt and the arm on the bedside table, Gavin curled up.

With closed eyes, Gavin did his best to fall asleep. _She won’t try again, she won’t be able to. No one else will come after you. You won’t be hurt again. It’s OK, It’s ok. Stop worrying. So, what if she did major damage last time? It can’t happen again…or it probably couldn’t. She won’t’ be able to get past the bailiff…. unless he’s human, but that probably won’t happen._ Gavin found himself trapped in a loop, unable to stop his thoughts.  It wasn’t until Nines’s arms wrapped around Gavin, pulled him back to be snuggled tightly along Nines’s  frame, that his thoughts allowed him to rest.

However, he was once again trapped in his nightmares. Stronger than they’d been for the last week, Gavin jolted awake a scant hour and a half later. Looking down, he saw Nines open his eyes.   
“Nightmare?” Nines asked, voice soft.

“Yeah.” Gavin’s voice was terse, coming out rougher than he’d intended. _Not gonna apologize. Not sorry.  “_ I’m going to go sit in the living room for a while.”

As Gavin started to sit up, Nines snuck his arm around his waist. “Don’t. You need to sleep to be ready for tomorrow.” Pulling Gavin down onto his chest, Nines pressed a kiss to Gavin’s temple. “I’ll stay with you, and you’ll be safe. Just sleep, OK?”

Knowing he had no option because of the advanced android, Gavin pressed his face into Nines’s chest. Huffing out a breath, Gavin relaxed and said “Fine. But only because you’re here.”

Nines’s voice was soft. “I’ll always protect you.”

Closing his eyes, Gavin fell back asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

The next morning, Gavin grumbled at the alarm. “I swear I just went to sleep.”  
“You slept the required average for men of your age. Com’on, get up.” Nines held Gavin for a second before pushing him out of bed.

Landing with a yelp, Gavin grumbled at Nines. “Should’ve dumped you into a trash compactor. Asshole.” Standing—and rubbing at the spot he’d landed on—Gavin shuffled into the bathroom.

“If you hurry, we might be able to hit the café near the courthouse that you like.” Nines called, and Gavin started to rush.

After twenty minutes, Gavin was as ready as he was ever going to be. “I look OK, right?” He asked, straitening his tie. “God, I hate this thing.”

Nines smiled. “I know. That’s why they were invented. For you to hate.”

Gavin glared at him. “Seriously. Trash. Compactor.”

Nines smiled. “You look fine. Let’s go, if you’re ready?”

Wrapping his arms around Nines for a second, Gavin held tight.

Startled, Nines wrapped his own arms around him. “Gavin?”  
“Just for a second, OK?” Gavin said, holding tight.

“OK. Second’s up.” Nines’s sarcasm caused Gavin to laugh.

“You’re the worst. Let’s go.” Opening the door, Gavin motioned Nines forward. “Go.”

Smiling, Nines bent down, kissed Gavin on the cheek, and then walked out.

Blushing, Gavin grinned. “Seriously. The. worst.”  He followed Nines to the car, hopping in and simply focusing on the radio as they drove to the courthouse.

“Gah, is there nothing good on?” Gavin grumbled, flipping past talk show and news. “Where’s the music?”  
Stumbling on a classics station, Gavin began to hum along. “Finally.”  
nines said nothing, merely keeping his eyes on the road until they reached the parking garage. Turning to Gavin, he reached out for his hand.

“Gavin. Look at me for a second, OK?” Nines said, voice soft, but strong.

“Uh…..sure, what’s up?” Gavin asked, confused by the softness of Nines’s voice.

“I will protect you today. If she tries to break free, I will be right there, next to you in seconds. You don’t need to be afraid of her, and I know you won’t let her make you afraid.” Leaning over, Nines tilted Gavin’s chin, and pressed their lips together for a split-second. “I love you for so many reasons and am proud of you. I know you’ll give me another reason to be proud of you today.”

Blushing furiously, Gavin looked toward his feet. “I…. I’m hungry, let’s go get food already.”  
Laughing, Nines nodded. “Finnicky creature.”

At that, Gavin laughed. “You mean you didn’t notice that until now? And you say you’re an advanced prototype.”

Walking side by side, Gavin and Nines tried to make their way to the small café, but were nearly bowled over the second they stepped out of the parking garage exit near the steps of the justice building.

“Mr. Reed.  What do you think should happen to the android?”

“How did you help the other two victims escape?”  
“What do you think of the term ‘Android hater’, Mr. Reed?”

Beyond the microphones, voices called out “Android hater!” or “Justice was served!” and signs declaring the DPD and justice system corrupt were held aloft.

A cataclysm of voices and question were thrown at Gavin at a rate much higher than usual. The crowd of media yawned around the two of them as they did their best to walk through.  
“No comment.” Gavin said, to any microphone shoved in his face.

Pushing through the majority of the crowd and into the justice building, Gavin turned to stare at the mob. “Why are there so many reporters?”

“Haven’t been keeping up with the news, have we, Detective Reed?” A voice called out. Turning, Gavin grinned.  
“Mike. You on this case?” A public defender Gavin knew from work jogged up.

“I’m interested in the outcome. And besides, I wanted to see how you were. You kind of vanished, you know.” Mike smiled. “We may be on the opposite side of the fence, but I do think you’re a fairly good cop. We need you.”

Looking around, Gavin double checked that he was talking to him. “Oh… Thanks.”

Mike grinned. “Man, no shit-talking? You’re really off balance, aren’t’ you?”

“Shut it, scum-defender.” Gavin jokingly jabbed him in the shoulder, and then his stomach rumbled.

“There we go. Geeze, was worried you’d had a personality transplant.” Mike waved. “I’ll see you two when you get back from where ever you’re going to get food.”

Nines smiled at Gavin’s grin. “Feel more like you’re steady now?”

“Kinda, yeah. Who knew all someone had to do was insult me?” Gavin asked, walking toward the back entrance of the building.

“I could’ve told you that.” Nines stated, face in his resting bitch face.

“Shut it.” Gavin smirked. “Let’s go get food.”

Dashing out the back entrance, Nines and Gavin took a circuitous route to avoid the reporters and protestors who were on the steps.

Feeling guilt in his gut, Gavin kept quiet as they navigated the streets to arrive in front of No Coffee=No Justice. Taking up the back of the line, Gavin stared at the slightly tanned tiles for a moment. “Nines?” He asked, shifting his gaze to the wall beside him.

“Yes?” Nines answered.

Gavin didn’t look up to meet his gaze. “Do you think the DPD and justice system is corrupt against androids?”

“Gavin….I think that there’s a systemic problem of a bias against androids. It’s not just the DPD or the justice system. Most people still hold old beliefs and biases against androids. It’s not your fault. It’s how you were raised.” Nines said, reaching for Gavin’s hand.

Pulling away before Nines could grab him, Gavin nodded. “I see your point.” Noting the line moving, Gavin stepped forward a half-step.

“I don’t think you do, Gavin.” Nines stepped next to him, wrapped his left arm around his waist, and then, with his right hand, tilted Gavin’s chin so that they were looking at each other in the eyes. “I love you, and I know it’s how you were raised. But you’re learning to not listen to those attitudes, to those old habits.”

Taking his hand from Gavin’s chin, Nines reached over and took Gavin’s right hand. Gavin’s skin on it receded, leaving the black metal visible.  Sadness and joy  flashed in Nines’s eyes as his LED spun red for a second when he looked at Gavin’s new arm before he looked him in the eyes. “And no matter what beliefs, what you did, this is not justice. It is not right. Don’t let them get into your head.”

Stepping up to the front, Gavin smiled at the barista. “Hi. Large Café Mocha with a couple extra shots of expresso, please. Oh, and one of these breakfast sandwiches, please.”

Smiling, the barista nodded. “Sure thing. Anything else?”

Glancing back, Gavin nodded to Nines. “Anything he wants.”

Nines stepped up, smiling. “A large chilled thirum, please.”

“Sure. What name do you want the order under?” The barista asked, the unnatural customer service smile gleaming.

“Gavin, please.” Gavin said, stepping back up.

Nodding, the barista rung them up. “If you’ll just wait over there, it’ll be out in a moment.”

Nodding, Gavin stepped over to a small table. Sitting down, he folded his arms and placed his head on them. “I’m so tired of this.”

Nines’s hand took his once again. White hand to black, they sat entwined. “I know. It’ll be over in a couple of hours, hopefully. Or at least, your part in it.”

Gavin sighed. “Hopefully.”

“Gavin!” Another barista called out.

Standing, Gavin moved forward to take his order. “Thank you.”

“Thank you. I hope your trial goes well today. What they did to you was wrong. And yes, there is corruption in the DPD and the justice system, but vigilante justice isn’t the answer.” The young woman’s LED circled an angry orange. “I hope you get justice.”  
Taken aback, Gavin said. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

Nodding, the barista turned back to her job.

Moving back to the table in a daze, Gavin felt his stomach growl, and his lungs catch a bit on a cough. “I’m hungry. Mind if we eat here?”  
“Of course not.” Nines took a seat at the same table, motioning to the chair. “Sit. It’s better for your digestion.”

Taking the seat, Gavin tucked into the meal. After a few bites, Gavin sighs. “We need to pretend we’re not close when we get in there, Nines.”  
Nines eyes refocused as he came out of whatever he was doing. “Why?”  
“You were the one to originally take stock of the apartment after I was taken, right?” Gavin asked, feeling a bit silly at the rhetorical question.

“Not the apartment, but I was the one to convey most of the information to Connor.” Sighing, Nines shook his head. “I see your point. Are you sure?” His LED flashed orange, yellow, orange.

“You’re upset.” Gavin rubbed at the back of his neck. “Look…uhm….never mind.” Shoving the last bit of his sandwich down, Gavin chewed, swallowed and jumped up.  “Let’s go.”  
“Gavin. I’m angry, yes. But it’s not your fault. This situation sucks.” Standing, Nines stepped ahead of Gavin. “We do need to head over now. Connor says that the protests have gotten stronger, so maybe sneaking back in the back route is best.”

“I’ll follow your lead.” Gavin said, with a grin.

“You only want that to happen so I have to deal with reporters first, don’t you?” Nines smiled. “Well, find. I want first crack at them anyway.” Turning, he started to lead the way.

“You’re kidding, right?” Gavin asked, jogging to keep up with Nines’s brisk pace. “No attacking people, dude. You know this.”  
Nines merely grinned, and Gavin felt something in his gut clench. “Nines….”  
“Don’t worry, I know.” Nines said but didn’t meet Gavin’s eyes. He stayed one step ahead of him the entire time, and they made it back to the courthouse unaccosted.


	12. Chapter 12

Gavin and Nines separated after a forearm squeeze, Gavin going to the room for witnesses/victims and Nines headed into the room to watch the proceedings.

Stepping into the area where witnesses were sequestered, Gavin felt a shudder run down the course of his body. “It’ll be over after this.” He mumbled to himself, taking a seat next to Maria.

Reaching over, she took his hand in hers, held it. “Hi. You’re OK.”  
“My readings showing that I’m that stressed, huh?” Gavin asked, with a bark of sarcastic laughter. “Great, isn’t it?”

Matt nodded. “Totally great. I hate suits. At the very least, let me splatter it with blood. At least it’d smell better. This palace smells like desperation.”

Maria and Gavin both turned to Matt. “Bad day?”

“Any day I have to wear something other than my apron and comfortable clothing is a bad day. Also, Hi, Gavin. Glad to see you back on your feet.” Matt smiled. “How’d you replace the arm so fast? What’s it made of?”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “Trade secret. And it’s an android arm repurposed to be a prosthetic.”

“Cool.” Matt said, then stared at the door. “How long do you think they’ll keep us waiting to go up there?”  
As if on cue, Matt was called as a witness. “Wish me luck.” He said, standing.

Now Maria and Gavin sat, each moment felt like an eternity. Jiggling his leg, Gavin tried to focus and repeat question he’d knew they’d ask.

“Hey.” Maria’s voice took him from his own thoughts.  
“What’s up?” Gavin asked, eyes refocusing.

“You’re making me nervous. Knock it off.” Maria said, standing to stretch. “You’re OK. You made it this far. This is nothing.”  
“Wow, I’m magically cured. Thank you. Now I’m just gonna go bash my head against the wall, thanks.” Gavin grumbled.

Smiling, Maria shook her head. “OK, let’s talk about something else. Are you and Nines engaged?”  
“Wait, what?” Gavin asked, snapping to attention. “Uh………No? Why are you asking?”  
“Oh, just something I thought I heard him mutter when you were brought into the hospital.” Maria said, smiling. “I have to admit, you two are pretty cute together.”  
“Um…. Thank you?” Gavin said, trying to push it out of his head. _Engaged? We aren’t. He probably said that to get into my room._ “He said that to get into my hospital room, more than likely.”

“Yeah, that would make sense. It was a mess when you came in. I’m just glad our best doctor was on staff that day.” Glancing over, she offered a sad smile as her LED spun yellow. “I have to admit, I thought that I’d left you to your death. I’m so glad you’re OK.”

Gavin smiled. “I trusted that you could make it to Nines in time. And you did.”  
“But at what cost? I’m so sorry I couldn’t go faster.” Maria’s eyes started to water.

“Huh. Are your tears thirium or?” Gavin asked, fascinated.

“Huh? Oh….yes, they are. What, never seen an android cry before?” Maria asked, rubbing her wrist under her eyes.

“Nope. Nines almost never cries around me, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen Connor cry, although I’d be less surprised if he snapped one day.” Gavin said, standing to pace. “He still gets flack because of the whole ‘deviant hunter’ crap.”  
“I guess androids also have a bias.” Maria said, dropping back into her seat. “God, why is life so confusing?”  
Gavin smiled. “You figure it out, let me know. We can write a book and sell it for millions.”

Maria flashed a grin. “I’ll do that.”

Feeling better, Gavin sat back down. Closing his eyes, he did his best to drift off into space.

He heard the door open, and Maria was called. Matt came back through, nodding to Gavin as he sat back down.  Saying nothing, he sat back down with Gavin to wait.

All too soon—but what felt like an eternity later—Maria came back and it was Gavin’s turn. Standing, he followed the bailiff to the door, and then took the stand. Scanning the jury—most of whom looked outraged and angry—Gavin then turned to look into the small crowd sitting in the courtroom. Cameras were set up along the edge baring different new station brands on them, and behind them, spectators sat there. Nines and the rest of Gavin’s group of supporters—Mike, Connor, Hank, and Tina—sat third row back.

Nines noticed Gavin’s gaze, and smiled. He mouthed _You can do this. Go._

Sitting down at the stand, Gavin did his best to brace himself for the oncoming onslaught of questions.

“Mr. Reed. If you would, please put into your own words what occurred on the night of October ninth.”

Taking a deep breath, Gavin began the story. “Well, it started when I was informed that I was free from work due to an investigation into my ‘anti-android’ attitudes.” Gavin continued talking, recounting everything that happened from that moment forward, hoping he was speaking clearly.

“OK. Thank you for being so concise. Do you see the person who did this to you in this court room?”  
“Yes, ma’am. She’s sitting at the defense table.” Gavin nodded toward Rian, who’d he’d done his best to avoid looking at this time.

“Thank you for your time, Detective Reed. That’s all, your honor.” Quietly, the prosecutor sat back down, smiling at him reassuringly.

_Oh, great. She’s trying to comfort me. This isn’t good._ Turning, Gavin looked to the defense attorney.

“Good morning, Detective Reed. I have a question for you. Do you believe that there are causes worth fighting for?” The defense attorney asked, pasting on a fake smile.

_Wow. That’s how you’re starting?_ “You’re asking me if I believe if there are things worth fighting for? Yes. But there are many ways to fight for a cause that do not involve violence.”

“Well, while that is true, there are plenty of causes that use violence to get what was needed done.” The defense attorney argued. “In the early 2016, a new cause about punching Nazis arose. It proved effective in breaking down the Fascist and Neo-nazi movement. Was the violence—in your opinion—justified?”

“As a police officer, I believe in the letter of the law. However, I understand there are some situations that seem dire enough for those who believe in them to feel that there is no other option besides violence.” Gavin said, trying to figure out where he was going.

“What if the justice system was corrupt against a group of people? Does that rise to the point of desperation?” The attorney asked.

“I could understand the feeling that there was no other option, but that’s a fairly narrow view. There are ways to protest the courts, the system. The fact that I was suspended points to that. My department would review my files and come to a decision.” Gavin said, taking a deep breath.

“And if the department proved to be biased against a group of individuals?” The lawyer asked. “Would that not require drastic measures?”  
“As I said before,” Gavin said, trying to keep a handle on his temper. “There are other ways beside violence. Support groups, advocacy groups and other methods have proven effective before.”

“That’s debatable, detective. Even your own partner reported on your anti-android attitudes, reporting that day that you had fired when he’d advised you against it.” The defense attorney said Gavin’s stomach dropped.

Looking over at Nines, Gavin prayed it wasn’t true. _Wait, they didn’t mention this when we went over my defense. Why? Did they think this wouldn’t be brought up? And Nines was the one who turned me in?_ Nines face was calm on the surface, but his LED spun red-orange. Pain slammed into Gavin’s stomach. _He did._

The lawyer continued talking.  _God damnit, did I get stuck in a motherfucking time loop? Keep it together, Gavin. They want you to look insane on the stand. It’s their last defense._

“Look.” Gavin said, feeling himself snap as the same question was asked for the umpteenth time. “I understand the urge, the desire for vigilante justice. And I am aware that the justice system has flaws. However, I think the system is inherently a good thing. I know that sometimes the system feels unfair, that it feels nearly impossible to defeat. However, there are ways. As an officer, I will always advocate for the law. I do not believe there are causes that are advanced by violence, only hindered by them. Those who protest the system with violence are usually caught and punished. And it can sometimes invalidate the work of those who protest peacefully.”

 Taking a deep breath, Gavin let out a sigh. “I know that there are issues for android citizens now. I also know this was not the attention those issues needed. Now those who preach against the system will be dismissed as insane radicals. I worry about what this will do to their cause.”

The defense attorney nodded. “I agree that….”  
“He knows nothing of our cause! How can he, stupid human!” Rian’s voice rang out.

_Shit shit shit, woke the beast up…. wait, she’s harming herself by doing this. It’s OK._ Gavin tensed, ready to flee to the door as necessary.

Standing, Rian yanked her arms out of socket to stand tall. Wires and metal screeched as her arms disconnected, seemingly not entirely attached anymore. “He can know nothing of how androids struggle. He’s always got the cops at his back, they’re his brothers in arms. And given that his partner is a race-traitor, I’m not surprised.”

_Holy shit, I caught the last train to haywire harbor. Shit. She’s going off the rails. Fuck. I want out. Now._

The judge banged her gavel. “Order. Ms. Clemmens, please sit down.”

“No! You’re conspiring against me. You’re all in on it.” Glaring at her attorney, she screamed. “You’re supposed to be on my side! I will not sit by idly as I’m sentenced to death.”  Exchanging a glance with Gavin, the defense attorney began to back away. “Please, calm down, Ms. Clemmens.”

Screaming incoherently, Rian stood, ripped her arms off. “Damn you.” Thirium spewed from the limbs for a second, before Rian fixed the problem somehow. She shouted, charging both Gavin and her defense attorney. Panic ensued, spectators rushing out, and camera crews jostling for a good position. Gavin noticed Nines, Connor, Hank and Tina all trying to get forward but unable to due to the ensuing crush of people.

The bailiff started forward but was easily taken out with a hard kick to the ribs. The bailiff dropped, with a wet gasp.

The defense attorney attempted to flee, but she kicked his leg out from under him with a crack, sending him sprawling.

Seeing Nines move up in his periphery, Gavin moved forward. “Leave him alone, Rian. You’re already in enough trouble. This is only going to make things worse. Stop.”

“Fuck you. You’re the reason I’m in this mess.” Rian focused on him, allowing the attorney to drag himself out of the way. “You are going to regret this.”

Lashing out with her foot, Rian kicked up. Blocking with his arm, Gavin heard the clang of metal on metal, and pain danced up his arm. Allowing his arm to follow her flow of motion, Gavin yanked her off balance, spun and pinned her to the ground. However, her other leg flailed, catching Gavin a few times in the ribs.

“Fuck.” Gavin grumbled, attempting to catch the leg.

Nines was there a split second later. Grabbing hold of her legs, he fastened them together with some type of silver rope. “Go check on the defense attorney and the bailiff. I’ve got her.”

Gavin stood as she began to spasm. Her LED spun red. “Is she OK?”  
“Her stress levels are too high.” Nines’s voice was flippant. “It’s OK. I’ll have Connor calm her down.”

Connor apparated next to Gavin. “I’ll get her calm, then I’ll get the defense attorney. His injuries may require him to be carried.”

Nodding, Gavin made his way to the bailiff, who was clutching his abdomen. “Hey, let me help.” Kneeling down, Gavin offered his hand. “Let’s get you out of here.”

“Thank you, Detective Reed.” The man stood, struggling to breathe. His arm wrapped around Gavin’s shoulders.  Hank came over, took the other arm as they all three walked out to the lobby.  
Glancing at his last name, Gavin smiled. “Rawlson, right?”

“Yes, sir. Andrew Rawlson.” The man breathed heavy and began to cough. Catching it, Rawlson held up his hand. “Shit. Blood.”

“It’s OK. There are ambulances on the way.” Hank said, helping Gavin to get Andrew seated on a bench. “You OK, Gavin?”  
“Yeah, I’m fine.” _No, not at all. Nines turned me in!_ Gavin didn’t feel much, just adrenaline and panic rushing through his system. Sadness still mostly rested behind the two other chemical responses. “Nines and Connor got her?”

“Yeah, I think so. Gavin, how about you sit down and wait with Rawlson?” Hank said, getting Gavin to sit.

“Nah. I want to help.” Gavin said, bouncing up.  
“God, you’re more insufferable when you’re high on adrenaline. How does Nines deal with you?” Hank asked, and forcefully shoved Gavin down. “Sit. Stay.”

“I’m not your giant beast of a mutt, Anderson.” Gavin grumbled. Sitting down, he glared.

Hank merely laughed. “I’d like you better if you were. But that’s not saying much. Animals are better than people.”

“Amen to that.” Gavin said, coughing hard. Pain began to radiate from his left side.

“Geeze. Stay here, OK?” Hank said, moving away.  

“Fine.” Gavin said, leaning back against the bench. Closing his eyes, Gavin let his mind wander.

“Gavin?” Nines’s voice came through. Opening his eyes, Gavin saw Nines leaning over him.

“Hey.” Gavin said, realizing that Rawlson was gone. “The bailiff gone?”  
“Yeah, they took him a few moments ago. You didn’t notice?”

Gavin shook his head. “No.” Sitting up, Gavin wrapped an arm around his middle as he stared down at the ground, away from Nines.

“Gavin, you’re shaking.” Kneeling down in front of him, Nines took his hand. “Are you sure you’re OK?”

“I think I want to go home, and be alone.” Pulling away from Nines, Gavin felt his lungs wheeze. “I’m OK.”  
“Your scans indicate that you are not.” Nines’s voice became harsh. “Gavin, I’m going to take you to the hospital, OK? It looks like she might have broken a rib or two. And it looks like she might have bruised a few things.”  
“Damn it, I’d just healed.” Gavin groaned.

Nines looked sad. “I know, Gav. I know. Let’s go.”

Standing, Gavin groaned. “God, can this day get any worse?”

Nines laughed. “I could carry you out.”  
“Do it and I put you into the nearest trash compactor.” Gavin threatened, not entirely joking. Anger he’d pushed down rose in his stomach.

Nines said nothing, reaching over to help support Gavin as they walked, but Gavin pulled away, stubbornly doing it on his own.

Walking to the car, Gavin felt relief when he could sit down again. “I’m tired.” _Of everything._  
“I’d prefer that you not go to sleep yet.” Nines said, starting the car and backing up. “Just wait until we get to the ER, OK?”

_Correction, I’m especially tired of you._ “I didn’t hit my head, Nines. Just got kicked a little.” Looking at the cityscape rolling by, Gavin felt the motion lulling him to sleep.

Music jolted him out of the semi-lucid state. It was a bunch of polka music.

“What the hell?” Gavin asked, sitting up and reaching for the radio. “At least put something on that I enjoy.”  
“If it’ll keep you awake, I will keep switching to random stations.” Nine said, slowing for a yellow.

“Hm….” Reaching behind him, Gavin pulled out a CD case. “I’ve got an idea.”

Popping in a disc, Gavin hummed along as the music started.

“Well, if it keeps you up.” Nines rolled his eyes at the music.

Saying nothing, Gavin watched the traffic move along. Glancing over at Nines, Gavin realized something. “Wait, don’t they need you at work?”  
“Not right now. I told Hank I was going to take you to the ER. Said you didn’t want the ambulance fees. He said he and Connor could handle it.” Nines said, keeping his eyes on the road.

“Nines, she ripped her own arms off and charged me. It took you to hold her down. Not that I’m doubting Connor, but you need to be there with him in case he needs help.” Gavin said, sitting upright.

“You’re more important, Gavin.” Nines said, turning right into the ER parking lot.

“I will be OK.” Unbuckling so he could get away from Nines, Gavin felt Nine’s gaze on him. “I’ll call Eli, and he’ll come and stay with me. Please, I’d feel better if you were there to help hold her down if necessary.” Gavin said, climbing out. _And I want to lick my wounds in private about that report you filed, asshole._  

Nines turned off the car, climbed out. “I’ll wait with you until Eli gets here.”  
“Nines…please just go?” Gavin asked, feeling unsure, angry, and tired.

“No. Not until I’m sure you’re taken care of.” Nines said, taking Gavin’s arm to lead him inside.

“I’m asking you, as someone who you know is trustworthy, for you to trust me. I will be OK.” Gavin said, pulling his arm away from Nines. Walking toward the entrance, Gavin pulled out his phone.

Nines stayed a half-step behind him. Saying nothing, he followed Gavin inside, sat down next to him as Gavin made the call.

“Hello?” Eli’s voice came over the phone. “Gavin, is that you? Are you alright?”  
The panic in Eli’s voice worried him. “Hi, Eli.”  
“Gavin, thank god. Where are you?” Eli asked, continuing before Gavin could respond. “I was watching the trial when she went nuts. Are you OK?”  
“Well… I’m in the ER, but it’s nothing major. I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind sitting with me in the waiting room?” Gavin asked, glancing at Nines. “I think they need Nines at work and I don’t want to be alone. Also, I was going to ask you to check my arm…I got into a bit of a fight today.”  
“Did you break your arm already? Damn, should’ve gone with my original time with Chloe. Ah, well.” Eli grumbled.

Gavin felt confusion rise within him. “What do you mean, original time?”

“Nothing! Sure, I’ll come sit with you. Which hospital? The same one as last time?” Eli asked, and Gavin could hear him picking up his jacket and keys.

“Yeah, Detroit central.” Gavin answered. “I’m just filling out paperwork right now.”  
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes. I’ll talk to you then.” Eli said, hanging up the phone.

Leaning back against the chairs made of plastic so uncomfortable Gavin swears it’s a way to get people to leave, he sighs. “He’ll be here in like twenty minutes. Go.”  
“I don’t want you to be alone.” Nines said, LED spinning red.

“Please.” Gavin said. “You can trust me.” _Even if I’m not sure if I can trust you._

“Can I? Can I trust you to think of yourself first? Because you should have run when she ripped her arms off. Run away from her, not to others.” Nines snapped, LED flashing red and orange.

Taken aback, Gavin pulled away. “Nines, are you mad at me because I wanted to help? And who are you to talk about trust? You’re the one who turned me in.”  
“Yes… Gavin you should have taken care of yourself first.” Nines scolded, avoiding the question of trust and Gavin felt his anger begin to burn in his stomach.

“I’m a cop. I was going to help. If I hadn’t, she might have stomped her lawyer into the ground. Look at what she did with one kick. Besides, I knew you’d be there.” Gavin said, trying to keep calm, despite the anger rising into his stomach. “You’d promised me that.”

Nine’s voice went softer, less angry and seemingly less panicky. “I know, but still. You should be more protective of yourself. God, I should have let her burn out and self-destruct.” Nines looked at the ceiling, and Gavin felt his gut drop.

“Don’t talk like that. Everyone deserved their day in court.” Gavin leaned back as far as he could, reliving the pressure on his side.

“No, she doesn’t. She couldn’t. Not after what she did. Whatever she suffers, I’m going to see to it that she suffers more.” Nines said, laser eye focusing on Gavin. “That’s a promise. I will make her pay.”  
“Nines. Drop it.” _You’re pushing off your responsibility here! What the hell?_  “You don’t need to do that. She’ll get her punishment from her peers. That’s enough for me.” Reaching out, Gavin cupped Nines’s cheek in his hand, trying to calm him down, despite the rage in his stomach.

Pushing Gavin’s hand away, Nines’s voice cut like a whip. “Well, it’s not enough for me. There’s no way for her to pay back what she owes society, what she’s possibly done to stir up the insane men and women in this city. She deserves death and I’m going to push for that.”

Pulling into himself, Gavin looked at Nines with new eyes. _This anger, this trial has poisoned his thoughts. It’s because he’s blaming himself. Not entirely wrongly, but he can’t let this take him over._ “Fuck you, Nines. I don’t want that.”

“Look, let’s not worry about it right now. Who knows, she may get scrapped anyway.” Nine said, leaning back.

Gavin felt his gut run cold. “Do you think so? She seems insane to me. They might order psych eval, or institutionalization.”  
“They can sentence that, but I’m going to fight it.” Nines said, looking around the ER. “It’s not super busy, wonder why it’s taking so long for them to take you.”  
“Nines, chill.” Standing, Gavin pulled out his wallet. “I’ll be back.”  
“Where are you going?” Nines asked, sitting up.

“Just to the vending machine. Calm down. I’ll be right back. I want a few moments alone to think.” Gavin said, emphasizing the ‘alone’ part and hoping that would get Nines to leave him alone.

“Fine, I’ll be right here.” Nines said, smiling.

“OK.” Gavin walked over to the machine, panicking. _God, what can I do? He won’t hear me, thinks I don’t understand. I just don’t want this to affect our lives anymore. Well, once he’s fucking explained that damn report and apologized for it. He’s not letting this go. It isn’t healthy. How can I  get him to listen?_

Glancing over the options, Gavin fed in the cash and selected an apple juice.

Pulling it out, Gavin did his best to hide the pain of bending over to pick up the drink. His side flared with pain. _She got me better than I thought._

Looking up, Gavin noticed Eli flying toward him. “Eli.” His voice was soft, exhausted. “Hi.”  
“Gavin.” Eli came up to him, glance over him. “You alright?”  
“She nailed me a couple of times in my side. Nines thinks she broke a rib or two, bruised an internal organ here or there. Nothing major.” Gavin grinned as Eli rolled his eyes.

“What type of pain meter do you have? Those are serious injuries. You idiot.” Eli said, motioning to the chairs. “How long have you been waiting?”  
“Um, about the twenty minutes when you were en-route. They said it would be about thirty.” Gavin said, leading Eli back to where Nines was sitting. “He’s here, go help your brother in case something happens.”  
Nines stood, glared, and then nodded. “Fine. I’ll see you later. I’m going, but I really don’t like it.”  Walking out the door, Gavin could see the LED spinning orange.

“Don’t hurt her, Nines.” Gavin called out, and he saw Nines flip him off in response.

“OK, you’re going to have to explain that last comment, Gavin.” Eli said, eyeing him. “If ‘she’ is who I think ‘she’ is, ‘she’ has already hurt a lot of people.”  
“Everyone deserves their day in court. She hasn’t been sentenced yet, and that is not up to us as people. The judge will lay down her sentence after the jury passed their verdict.” Gavin sat down, gingerly.

“Gavin, what’s going on?” Eli asked, his gaze meeting Gavin’s.

Explaining how Nines had become overprotective, way too aggressive toward others and—most importantly—that Nines had turned him in for being ‘anti-android’, Gavin waited for his name to be called.

“Wow. He was the one who turned you in?” Eli asked, watching Gavin’s face.

“Apparently, he did.” Gavin leaned back, as his side started to hurt more.

“And you’re OK?” Eli asked, reaching to hold Gavin’s shoulders.

“No, I’m not. I’m mad, but I’m so tired of all of this. I just can’t keep fighting everyone, Eli. I’m upset, but I’m willing to let this go for now if we can talk about it later.” Gavin groaned. “God, I want pain killers.”

“I don’t blame you for that. Conversations like those suck. Are you worried this is going to affect him at work, possibly endangering his career?” Eli asked, only to be interrupted by a nurse calling for Gavin.

“Yeah.” Standing, Gavin reached over to Eli. “Just because I’m angry doesn’t mean I stop caring.” Hearing his name, Gavin held out a hand to Eli. “Follow me back, OK? Otherwise, Nines might not stay away.”

“OK.” Eli stood, followed his brother back to the exam room. “I’m just going to stare at the wall while you change into the most uncomfortable gown ever.”

“Amazing how everything else has advanced but these things still suck.” Gavin said, switching over. Lying down on the bed, Gavin sighed. “God, that’s better.”  
“Gavin, what else worries you about this change?” Eli asked, sitting down next to him.

“Well the fact that he doesn’t listen to me. I just want this to stop after the trial is over. She’ll be found guilty, and I don’t doubt that. She’ll be sentenced, and then I want to forget this happened. I want life to go back to normal. Work, home and love life—everything—should go back to normal after this. Well, after he begs for forgiveness on his knees, because seriously, what the fuck with that damn report. Motherfucking asshole.” Rage boiled in his gut. “He could have cost me my job, and he refuses to say so. Instead, Nines refuses to let the case agains Rian go unless she gets the death penalty.”  Gavin stared up at the ceiling. “I can’t handle this trial continuing much longer..”

“Gavin… I don’t know what to tell you.” Eli reached out. “If you want, if he keeps pushing, I can get you out of the state for a few days. Give you both time to breath and recollect yourselves. Work out what you want to say and let him stew for a bit.” 

“How so?” Gavin asked, feeling a possible escape from the hellscape of Detroit might not be a bad thing.

“I’ve been asked to speak up at a college in Montana, near Yellowstone. If I say yes, I could use a security officer. Given that you’re on leave, you could go with, act as a body guard.” Eli smiled. “And then we could hike around Yellowstone for a little bit. Nothing like actual fresh air to help you think.”  
Gavin grinned. “It would be a nice change in scenery. I’ll think about it, but only if I can’t get Nines to listen and apologize to me.”

“OK. Just let me know.” Eli said, leaning back into the small chair.

The rest of the hospital visit went quickly, with Gavin’s ribs being wrapped. The rest of the problem would be taken care of with pain-killers and bedrest.

After another hour and a half, Gavin signed himself out and Eli took them back to Gavin’s apartment. “Want to go get food?”  
Shaking his head, Gavin leaned against the car door. “No, I think the meds are kicking in. I just want to sleep.”

Eli walked around, glance at Gavin. “Dude, I can’t carry you. Wait until we get you inside to pass out, OK?”

“Picky motherfucker.” Gavin grimaced. “Let’s go.”  
Luckily, the elevator was empty as they rode to Gavin’s floor. Walking out into the hallway, Gavin led the way as Eli followed to make sure Gavin didn’t tilt backwards.

Opening the door, Gavin shuffled the cats back with his feet, allowing Eli entry before quickly closing the door so no feline escape artist could get out.

Eli smiled, and picked up the purring Donkey. “Fluffy.”  
“Very much so.” Dropping down on the sofa, Gavin felt relief course through his system. “I’m so glad today is done. They’ll probably sentence tomorrow. And then I can forget this whole damn mess.” Luna jumped up, curled on his chest.

Picking up his phone, Gavin sent Nines a fast text. Made it home, all safe, all good. Everything with you OK? Putting his phone down, Gavin felt his stomach rumble.

Eli smiled. “Yeah, but for right now, if I order pizza, will you eat it?”  
“What kind of dumbass question is that? Pizza? Hell yes!” Gavin smiled. “Supreme.”  
“What other kind is there?” Eli asked, pulling out his phone.

Gavin flipped on the TV, going straight to cartoons.

Eli dropped down and pulled out a tablet.

They waited in companionable silence as they waited for the pizza to arrive, Eli reading something, and Gavin letting his mind wander and destress as a children’s cartoon played. The cats bounced back and forth between the two, demanding pets from both of them.

The knock on the door sounded, and Eli grinned. “Food. Finally.”

Opening the door, Eli quickly paid for the food. “Thanks, have a nice night.”  
“You, too.” The older woman smiled. Tucking her bag under her arm, she walked away.

Closing the door, Eli smiled. “God, this smells good.”

“Hell yeah it does. I’ll grab plates.” Picking up his phone, Gavin checked it. _Huh. No texts. Strange._

Standing, Gavin walked into the kitchen. Grabbing plates, Gavin brought them back before digging in.

Eli smiled. “You still eat like a pig, dude.”  
“Bite me.” Gavin rumbled between bites. Downing two pieces, Gavin felt the exhaustion slipping back through him.

“The pills I took are starting to really get to me. If I pass out, don’t worry.” Gavin said, slipping down to lie on his side.

Eli smiled. “Not the first time you’ve fallen asleep on me, won’t be the last. I’ll stay with you until Nines comes back.”

Smiling, Gavin nodded. “Thanks, Eli.”

“Don’t go mushy. I don’t handle mushy. Just sleep.” Eli said, turning back to his tablet, pizza slice in hand. Donkey came up, rubbing against Eli’s leg, begging. “Besides, I do want to pet the kitties for a little while.”

“Wh...” Gavin let out a huge yawn and curled into a loose ball. “Y don’t you have one of your own?”

“Maybe I should.” Eli smiled. “what do you…”

Elis voice faded as Gavin fell asleep.

The slam of the door woke him.

Jolting upright, Gavin saw Nines standing by the door. “’ines? Wh’ts up?” Gavin sat up, rubbing at his eyes.

“They passed her sentence. She got life in prison.” Nines’s voice was static-filled, angry.

“So, it’s over.” Gavin felt his relief flow through him. Tears gathered. “Thank god.”  
“It’s not over. This is a travesty.” Nines growled, moving past Gavin to the bedroom.

“I think I should go, Gav.” Eli stood.

“Oh, yeah, probably.” Standing, Gavin side-hugged Eli. “Thank you for hanging out with my passed-out ass.”  
“Feel better, Lil’Gavy.” Eli smiled as Gavin growled.

“Use that nickname again and I’ll take you down.” Gavin smiled, watching as Eli picked up his jacket and tablet.

“Bitch, you’re on. Let me know when you’re free. And if you need me, call.” Eli smiled, glancing over at the hallway nervously. “Seriously, if you need anything, call me.”

Eli left, and Gavin felt the rage suffuse the apartment.

“God, this is gonna be bad.” Gavin groaned under his breath.

Standing, he moved into the hallway, noticing that the bedroom door closed.

_Fuck, do I leave him alone to stew or do I do something?If I leave him alone, though, I don’t get any answers. And I want those._

Moving to the door, Gavin knocked. “Nines?”  
No answer.

“Wow. It’s like in a horror movie.” Gavin opened the door, and saw Nines sitting on the bed looking out the window.

Moving in, he closed the door, and sat down next to Nines. “Wanna talk about it?” Gavin asked, simultaneously praying the answer was ‘yes’ and ‘no.’

Nines laid down on his back, saying nothing.

Sitting down next to Nines, Gavin reached out to touch him.. “Nines….”  
“I don’t want to talk. I’ll figure it out later. I just want you for right now.” Nines’s voice was sharp, almost biting.  
“I’ll be in the living room, if you want to apologize for that report. Then we can talk.” Gavin turned and went back to the hallway.

“Fuck off.” Nines snapped, and Gavin slammed the door between them.

After two hours of stubborn silence, Gavin stood.

“I’m going to go get food. I’ll see you later.” Gavin called out, walking to the door.

Nines called back: “Ha. Like I’m letting you out of my site.”

Leaving, Gavin swung into the drivers side, and started to back up when Nines opened the passenger door and dropped down into it.  

Turning on music, Gavin hummed along as he ignored Nines the best he could.

Nines said nothing, watching Gavin.

“OK, why are you staring?” Gavin asked, feeling uncomfortably angry at the surveillance.

“Am I?” Nines said, not pulling his gaze away. “I didn’t mean to.”  
Doing his best to ignore the searching gaze, Gavin focused on the road.

Pulling up to his favorite bar, Gavin climbed out.

Nines came up silently behind him. “Gavin.”

Jumping, Gavin spun and nearly tripped. “Fuck off, asshole. Jesus. I forget how quietly you can move.”

Rolling his eyes, Nines smiled. “You goof. Let’s go get you food.”

_He’s acting weird. What’s going on?_ Following, Gavin did his best to scan over Nines. _He’s acting like everything’s OK. Which is awesome, I want things to go back to normal. But he still hasn’t apologized. Or told me off for telling him to go fuck himself._

Plopping down at a table, Gavin flashed a grin at the bartender, who immediately poured Gavin’s favorite beer.

“Aren’t you on meds? Gavin, you also haven’t eaten for a few hours. Mixing alcohol with meds—and on an empty stomach—isn’t a great idea.” Nines said, pushing away the mug.

Thinking back, Gavin sighed. “Fine. No booze. Just food.” _They should be wearing off soon. Shit. Forgot them at home. Damn it._  
Glancing over, Allie—a waiter—wove their way over. “Hi, guys. Here for food tonight?”  
“Hi, Allie. Yeah, we are. I want the usual, please.” Gavin said, turning to scan patrons surrounding them..

“Sure thing. Anything for you Nines?” Allie asked, flashing a grin.

“No, thank you. Anything we need to watch out for tonight?” Nines asked, also scanning over the surrounding area.

“Um…. No, not that I can think of. Geeze, coppers. You’re all golden here.” Allie’s lilting laugh put both of them at ease.

“Thanks, Allie.” Gavin felt some of the tension drift away.

“No problem, guys. I’ll get your order in.” Allie danced around the other tables, moving toward the kitchen.

“God, this is nice.” Gavin said, listening as the music played over. “I guess I was going stir-crazy with being stuck inside.”

“Mmm.” Nines didn’t take his gaze from the surrounding area.

“Nines, relax.” Gavin snapped, watching Nines give death glares to everyone.

His LED flickered yellow. “I’m not sure I’m comfortable with us being out in public yet. Too many variables.”  
“Nines, nothing is going to happen. Calm down.” Gavin felt the tension rush back into his muscles.

“How do you know nothing will happen?” Nines asked, keeping his eyes on any possible encroachers to their table.

“Nines, you can’t live your life expecting the worst.” Gavin watched his partner, prayed his voice would penetrate the walls of thought in the androids head.

“Gavin, I’m not being unreasonable. This only happened a week or so ago. It’s better to be cautious at this point.” Nines glanced over, then back to scanning the people around them.

Sighing, Gavin stopped fighting as his food was placed in front of him. “Thanks, Al.”  
“No problem, Gav. We’re all glad you’re OK.” Allie smiled. “Let me know if you need anything else.”

“Thanks.” Gavin said, digging into the food like a starving man.

“Gavin?” Nines asked, and Gavin looked up.

“I will fix things.” Nine said, watching the floor.

“Does that mean you’re going to apologize?” Gavin asked as he pushed the rest of the sandwich he’d ordered away.

“No. I did what I had to as an officer. I don’t regret that part.” Nines glanced at Gavin, before turning back to his surveillance.

 Standing, Gavin grabbed his jacket.

“Gavin?” Nines asked, turning to look at him, concerned.

“Nothing, I’m just going to go to the bathroom then get a to-go box.” Gavin said, not waiting for a response.

Ignoring Nines’s call, Gavin slipped into the bathroom. Flipping on the faucet, Gavin cupped his hand under the water, splashing water on his face. “God, I’m tired. Damn it, damn it.”

Taking several deep breaths, Gavin walked back out to the bar. Waving down the bartender, Gavin smiled apologetically. “Hi, Mari. I need to pay and if I could get a to-go box, that’d be great.” Pulling out his credit card, Gavin waited.  
“Sure.” Mari reached out for the credit card Gavin held. “Is everything alright?”  
“Yeah, I forgot something at home, and I’m feeling kind of tired.” Gavin leaned on the bar.

Mari put the transaction through, handed back the card and the to-go box. “I hope you feel better soon.”  
“Thanks, Mari.” Gavin smiled.

Turning he made his way back to the table where he packed up the rest of the food.

“Gavin. What’s going on?” Nines asked, confused. “Are you OK?”  
“Yeah, just tired. Let’s go. You drive, I kinda wanna zone out.” Tossing Nines the keys, Gavin led the way out of the bar.

“Gavin, I know that’s not all of it. What’s going on?” Nines pressed, reaching out to grab Gavin’s shoulder.

“Look, it’s neither the time nor the place. Let’s go home. I’m really tired.” Gavin ducked out of Nines grasp, pulling away and glancing back.

“Fine.” Nines’s voice blew frozen. “Let’s go home.”

Shivering under his jacket, Gavin swung down into the passenger’s seat.

“Gavin, I want to know what’s wrong.” Nines snapped, starting the car.

Saying nothing, Gavin let himself check out, mentally. Not even music was able to shock him out of it, and after a few moments of obnoxious polka music playing, Nines turned it off and began to talk. Drifting, Gavin only heard Nines in passing. He came through as if calling out in a strong wind. A syllable here or there.

Eventually, Gavin noted that the car had stopped in the perpetually soothing motion. Opening his eyes, Gavin started to reach for the door handle when it was wrenched open.  
“Gavin. Let’s go.” Nines’s voice stung like salt in a wound.

“OK.” Unbuckling, Gavin grabbed the to-go box and walked inside. The car door was slammed with enough force to make Gavin wince.  
Walking up the stairs, Gavin could feel Nines’s gaze on his back. Saying nothing, Gavin led the way back to the apartment, and unlocked the door. Going inside, Gavin went into the kitchen, opened the fridge and put away the rest of the sandwich.

Hearing the door close softly, Gavin sighed. Moving to the window, Gavin stared out.

Nines came up behind him, close but not touching. “Gavin, what’s going on? You were enjoying being out.”  
“I’m just tired, and I forgot my pain medication here. I’m hurting.” It wasn’t entirely a lie. His meds had started to wear off.

Gavin could feel the tension in the air wane. “Oh, Gavin.”

Nines stood, moved away to the living room table where the medication sat. Gavin could hear him pick it up, bring it back. “Here.”

Taking it, Gavin dumped out the correct dosage. Moving to the fridge, Gavin pulled out a bottle of water before downing the pills.

Turning, Gavin trudged out of the kitchen, going to the bedroom. Tossing his jacket on the couch on his way, Gavin started to undress. By the time he reached his side of the bed, he was down to his boxers. Flopping down onto his bed, Gavin curled up on his right side. _I’m tired._

Pulling the covers up to his shoulders, Gavin felt the exhaustion that had been following him throughout the week ebb as his consciousness went with it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout-out to hey_b0ss for their awesome idea about the report! ( I totally used it with their permission.)


	13. Chapter 13

For the next month and a half, subtle changes rocked the house. Nines’s refusal to apologizes slowly broke the two down. Physical touch vanished, as Nines got more and more over protective. “I don’t want to have to push you aside should I need to protect you.” Nines said, whenever Gavin touched him. Eventually, Gavin stopped trying.  As his ribs healed, he blamed any exhaustion on the pain medication. Nines didn’t seem to notice. Nightmares still plagued him, but no matter how much Gavin told Nines to drop the suit he was preparing against Rian, he refused saying that Gavin should be on his side with it. “Nines, I want this to stop.” Gavin would say, holding out hope that this time Nines would hear him. Of course, the answer was usually: “It’s OK Gavin, you don’t have to worry. I’ll take care of it. I’ll protect you and get justice.”

Conversation stopped, because Nines always wanted to talk about his suit against Rian. Any attempt to talk about work, other cases or get an apology fell on deaf ears. Once again, Gavin gave up trying to talk about much beyond the necessities.   
Exhausted, Gavin climbed into bed more often than not. After feeling the last of his reserve snap, Gavin climbed into bed at eight in the evening after once again trying to get Nines to drop the suit he was working on against Rian and the others. Closing his eyes, he felt a tear or so trickle out.

The next thing he knew, the sun shone in window at a steep peak.

_What time is it?_ Sitting up, Gavin turned the bedside clock to face him.

“Noon?” Gavin felt surprise roll over him. “Guess I needed the sleep.”

Standing, Gavin grinned down at the fluffy beings weaving their way determinedly through his legs. The one spot of sunshine in his life. “Got it, want to be fed. Let’s go.”

Making his way to the kitchen, Gavin noticed the absence of a particular android.

“What day is it?” Gavin wondered as he pulled down the cat food. Dishing it out, Gavin glanced at the calendar. “Wednesday. Got it. That makes sense.”

Stretching, Gavin walked back to grab his phone from the bedside table, Gavin sent Nines a fast text. _I’ll try, one last time._ Hey, I’m awake. What’s up with you, Tinman? 

Putting his phone down as he changed, Gavin stretched and enjoyed the solitude.

Hearing the door open, Gavin felt confusion rise. “Nines?”  
“Gavin. How are you feeling?” Nines’s  voice rang out, calm and confident. “Would you mind coming out here?”  
“Sure, give me a sec.” Throwing on a t-shirt, Gavin walked out to Nines. “What’s up?”  
“I have a few case documents for you to look over. I’ve found a way to take her down, but I need you to cooperate.” Nines’s  voice was cheerful. “I’m so close to taking her down.”  
Gavin felt his gut ice over. “Nines. Stop it.”  
“Stop what, Gavin? I’m not doing anything.” Nines asked, turning to place the documents on the living room table. Moving to the couch, he sat. “What’s wrong?”  
“What’s wrong?” Gavin felt his voice rise. “You’re becoming obsessed and won’t listen to me, that’s what’s wrong. I’ve told you, it’s done and that I’m more upset that you didn’t apologize for turning me in. Drop it.”  
Nines’s  LED flashed red, angry. “No, it’s not done. Not until we get justice.”

“Nines, justice has been served. It doesn’t help if you chase this any further. The courts have spoken. At this point, I’m more upset about the entire fucking report you turned in! What did you think was going to happen? I could have lost my job!”  
Nines’s LED now spun red. “You are worth everything to me, I knew you wouldn’t get fired. I wouldn’t risk your job like that.”  
“Nines, you DID do that. I don’t want you to get hurt because you’re so angry and upset about what happened to me. Please, for your sake—and for mine—drop this now.”

“Gavin, I will not drop it. She did this to you, hurt you and isn’t paying the correct price.” Nines stood, anger creeping into his tone.

“Nines, this isn’t healthy.” Gavin walked over, reached out to put his hand on Nines’s shoulder.

Jerking back, Nines shook his head. “It’s perfectly healthy. It’s just not rational to someone who doesn’t think as logically or as intelligently as I do.”

Gavin felt the words cut into his chest, felt his anger rise through his stomach to spew out from his mouth. “Well, forgive me for not being a perfect fucking being like you are. And buddy, you’re not all that perfect if you ask me. It’s obvious that you don’t feel in the way that you should. After all, you turned me in and probably set all of this in fucking motion. We make an amazing couple.”  
Nines stared at Gavin, and Gavin stared at Nines. _Shit, shit, I should not have said that. He already blames himself for her actions._

Gavin watched as the hurt in Nines’s eyes vanished under a cold detachment. “I’m going to the lawyer’s office after work. After I am done discussing justice with them, I will come home. I probably won’t be back until much later tonight. I want you to be here, we will talk then.”

Turning, Nines let himself out.

Sinking to the ground, Gavin felt tears of anger, rage and loss well up.  Twenty minuets went by, and Gavin felt his gut sink further and further each moment, wondering how long until he was hollow inside.

“It really did destroy us. It did.”  Rocking back and forth, Gavin felt his heart slowly shatter into piece, and each piece rip off and sink into his gut, jagged edges cutting more as time went by.

_I need to leave. I need away from Detroit, from this whole mess. From Nines_

Climbing to his feet, Gavin reached for the one life line he had.

Dialing, Gavin pulled down a small, carry-on sized suitcase.

“Hello?” Eli picked up, sounding unsure. “Gavin, what’s going on?”  
“Eli, I need to get out of here. I need to leave Detroit, even if it’s only for a little while. Please.” Gavin felt tears leak, and his voice break.

“Gavin, what’s going on?” Eli asked. “You know what, I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Eli, I’m only asking that if you go to Montana that you let me go with you.” Gavin said, packing as he spoke. “Please.”  
“OK, something is capital W wrong, and I will be there to pick you up in twenty minutes, maybe less. I will be there soon.” Eli hung up, leaving Gavin to pack. Pulling out everything, Gavin shoved it into various receptacles. Vacuum sealed bags for his clothes, boxes for everything else. HE packed with the desperation of a mad man, doing his best to make it so he’d be ready when Eli got there.

Gavin pulled down the travel carriers for both Luna and Donkey. Picking them up, he easily got Donkey put away, and with some amount of fuss, packed away Luna as well. “OK, got you two ready to go.”

Throwing his shaving kit into the suitcase, Gavin paused for a moment. _Got clothes packed, got my shaving kit. Got my meds. Electronics are there, cats are ready—oh, except for food._

Moving to the kitchen, Gavin pulled the bag of cat food from the pantry and placed it next to their carriers.   
Looking up, Gavin gazed into one of the few pictures he kept around the house.

It was him and Nines, out celebrating a successful case. The two were laughing, as they danced. Nines and Gavin were looking at each other, each obviously star-struck with the other.

Tears spilled once again, and Gavin felt the jagged pieces of his heart cut into his gut again, spilling fresh blood. “I love you, Tin can.” _He deserves a note._

Pulling out the small spiral Gavin kept next to the phone, Gavin began to write.

Nines.

I… ~~I’m so sorry. But~~ I can’t handle this anymore. I’m so tired of the trial, of your lawsuit, and of you **refusing to apologize**.  You’re so stuck on protector mode that you don’t seem to hear me anymore when I talk. I’ve told you that I’m more upset about your report! ~~I miss the man who talks to me and who actively listens to me. He seems to have vanished under the pressure of fear and anger and rage.~~

First, What I said about you not feeling things correctly was wrong. I know you worry about that a lot.

~~ And to defend myself, don’t bring up the fact that you consider me inferior. I’m just as smart as you, asshole.   ~~

Anyway, I’m going with Eli for a few days. He said he needed a bodyguard for a small speaking engagement, and—considering current circumstances—I don’t think it’s a bad idea for us to be apart ~~for a little bit~~. 

Nines, I don’t want you to drag yourself down on this one case because it involved me. I want the partner who trusts me to know my own mind. You constantly scan, looking for threats, for problems, that you miss when I tell you that I’m tired. ~~But you couldn’t go off protector mode to be there for me as my friend, let alone my~~ … Anyway, I can’t handle your obsession with the case anymore. It’s like you’re looking for vengeance, not justice. 

I believe in the letter of the law, Nines. And the letter says that everyone is entitled to their day in court, and that once they are tried and sentenced that justice has been served. Well, for the most part anyway. I believe that justice has been served in this case, that there’s no point in pushing things any further. She’s done. Let it go.

Nines, if this is going to affect you so badly, I don’t want any part of it. I don’t want to watch you self-destruct. ~~I love you, no matter what, but I can’t…~~. So, if this case is only going to drag you down, I think….

Openly crying, Gavin wrote the next line.

If this case—me, being the cause of the case—is going to drag you down to this level, I think it’s better that we not see each other anymore. As it is, I’m not sure I can trust you anymore. When I get back, I’ll ask Fowler to reassign us new partners, and I’ll stay with Eli while I look for a new apartment. 

~~ Thank you for saving my life, even if… ~~

~~ I love you. ~~

\--Gavin. 

Hearing a knock on the door, Gavin wiped away tears and stood.

Moving over, he opened the door to a very worried looking Eli.

“You’re crying.” Eli stated, entering the apartment and closing the door. “What’s going on?”  
“He won’t let it go, Eli. And I can’t handle it anymore. I can’t get him to listen about the report.” Leaning forward, Gavin felt the pain riot in his stomach. “I can’t take this. I need to leave, be gone from here.”  
“OK, Gav. If you want to go, I will help you.” Eli wrapped his arms around Gavin. “Are you packed?” His tone was gentle, but Gavin missed the questioning gleam in his eyes.  
Nodding, Gavin walked over and picked up the small pile of luggage. “For the most part. Is it OK if I stay with you while I look for a new place?”  
“Of course.” Moving over, Eli picked up one of the kitties, and nodded. “Pack the rest, I’ll take these two down to the car. Then I’ll help you pack the rest. I think I need to hear more of the story to fully understand.”  
Gavin sighed. “You always did need to know more.”

The rest of the packing took about an hour. Doing a sweep, Gavin ended up in the living room. Staring at the photo, Gavin grabbed it. _I want this._ Walking to Eli—who was waiting by the front door—Gavin pulled out his keys. Pulling the house key off, Gavin placed it on top of the note.

Saying nothing, Gavin left, closing the door behind him.

During the ride to Eli’s, Gavin explained everything that was going on.  
“OK. I kind of understand.” Eli said, climbing out.

After bringing everything into the house, Eli sat Gavin down. “Gavin, are you sure about this?”  
“About getting out of town for a little bit, yes.” Gavin said, idly rubbing at Luna’s head.

“That’s not what I meant. Gavin, Nines loves you, even if he totally fucked up. I’ve seen it in the way he looks at you.” Reaching out, Eli place his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “I worry that you’re making a rash decision.”

“Eli, I know he loves me. Or, he thinks he does. But love is trust, and I can’t trust him anymore. And he doesn’t’ trust me. I need him to trust me, to hear me when I say that this should be over.” Gavin said, looking up to meet Eli’s eyes. Tear-stained red eyes met calm ones. “I can’t let him destroy himself, his career, because he can’t let go of the guilt he feels because of his report and the actions of a psychotic woman. I… care about him too much to let him go nuts over this case. Besides, he isn’t there for me, not in the ways I need now. So, it’s better to get out before we both hurt each other more.”

Eli sighed. “If this is what you want to do, I will help you. I love you either way, Gavin.”

Gavin smiled. “Word I’d thought I’d never hear you say.” Leaning over, Gavin grasped at his brother’s forearm. “Thank you, El.” The sadness in his gut sat, heavy. He needed contact of some type.

Eli grasped back. “No problem, Lil’ one. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go call to have the plane readied. It should be ready to go in under an hour and a half.”

Gavin bristled at the nickname. “Dude, fully grown. Stop calling me that.”

Eli laughed. “But you’re still my baby brother.”

“Fuck you.” Gavin felt happiness rear. “I’ll take you down.”  
Eli rolled his eyes. “Come at me, Babu.”

Jumping forward, Gavin wrestled with his brother.

Laughing, the two tussled for a moment before Eli yielded. “OK, fine. Your training wins.”

Sitting back, Gavin smiled. “Thanks. Nines and I….” The shards cut deep once again. Coughing, Gavin continued. “We trained together.”

Eli nodded. “I see. Be ready to go in like fifteen minutes. Spend some time with the kitties. I’m tempted to steal the fluff balls.”

Gavin felt the smile he pasted on wobble. “I would be, too.”

Eli left, leaving Gavin alone with his thoughts.

_He doesn’t even know yet, and I’m running like a scared rabbit. This feels wrong, but at the moment, everything is wrong. This is going to hurt him so bad._

_Well, if he’d listened, nothing would be wrong._ Another voice argued. _It’s not healthy for me, and I shouldn’t feel bad about breaking it off._

_I love him, though._

_I know, but love shouldn’t hurt all the time. And that’s where we are._

The door swung open. “Hey, wanna leave a little early and go get food?”

“I’m not hungry but leaving early might be a good idea.” Gavin said, reaching out to pet Luna, and pulled Donkey to his chest to hold for a moment. “Are you sure Chole doesn’t mind staying here?”

“No, she was fine. She said that she may try to figure out how to program a catdroid with Luna’s personality, so she can keep her.” Eli smiled. “You found a gem of a cat.”  
“She found me.” Gavin smiled at her playful pounce onto his lap. Picking her up, Gavin cuddled her to his chest.  Standing, he placed Luna on the bed before he picked up his suitcase and smaller backpack. “Let’s go.”

On the way, Eli filled Gavin in on the speaking engagement.

“It’s a university about an hour away from Yellowstone. I’ll be speaking tomorrow to a couple of engineering seminars, and later that night at a bigger event. From what I understand, there haven’t been any threats, but I don’t know how long that will last.”  
“OK. Do you know the rooms you’ll be speaking in?” Gavin asked, pulling up the email.

“Yes.” Pulling up the blue prints, Eli handed Gavin his tablet.

“OK. I’m going to study these, so I’ll have you forward them to me.” Gavin said, handing the tablet back. “Anything else I should know?”  
“Yeah, don’t push yourself. I know you’re still sore from the ribs.” Eli said, pulling his tablet back and putting on headphones.

“What good am I as a body guard, then?” Gavin saw a smile crease Eli’s face.

“Ha. None. Good thing I love you, Lil’ one.”

Shoving Eli, Gavin mirrored him by putting on headphones to listen to music while he studied the blueprints.

They landed about two hours later and fifty minutes later.

Gavin had given up on studying the blue prints, zoning out with music rushing through his body. Metal flowed through his body, had him bobbing his head along with the rhythm.  

Standing and stretching, Gavin and Eli waited patiently as the first part of the front row disembarked.

“I’m surprised. Why don’t you use a private plane?” Gavin asked, shuffling off the plane with everyone else.

“I had one, but when I stepped down, I thought it kind of superfluous. After all, I did become a hermit. I didn’t leave. After a year of having it sitting around, I sold it.” Eli said, hoisting his bags in order to secure a better grip on it.

“OK. What next?”  Gavin asked, walking to the exit. “Do we need to go catch a cab, or?”  
“Actually, we’ll need to head downstairs to rent a car. We’re about two hours down the road from the university. I figured we’d drive the rest today, crash tonight there, and then drive to the university tomorrow.” Eli said, leading his way to the rental car spot.

“I mean, I guess we don’t have to drive. They won’t have any actual cars here, just automated ones.” Gavin grumbled.

Eli glanced back. “What, do you want to drive?”

Gavin thought about it for a second. “Kinda. Yeah.”

“I’m willing to bet we can make that happen.” Eli said.

After a little bit, Gavin climbed behind the wheel of a huge truck. “This is awesome.”  
Eli looked a little pale. “Are you sure you can drive this thing without crashing it? It’s not the same size as that relic you have.”

“Bite me. This is so cool.” Flipping on the radio, Gavin enjoyed the power that flowed through the gas pedal as the truck smoothly slid forward.

Eli rolled his eyes. “Living out some deep-seated fantasy, are we?”

Gavin rolled his eyes and snapped back “Shut up and let me enjoy this. You got to do your fantasy of being a normal human for a few hours.”

Eli simply stared out as the scenery rolled by. “OK. We’re headed to Bozeman, so it should be simple. I’ll navigate, you drive. Deal?”  
“I pick the music.” Gavin insisted, flipping through the radio stations until he found one he liked.

Eli shrugged. “At least you have good taste.”

Smiling, Gavin enjoyed driving along the freeway.

About a half hour later, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. “Hey, my phone’s going off. If I hand it to you, do you mind answering it?” 

Eli glanced over. “Where is it?”   
“Hang on.” Reaching around, Gavin pulled his phone out of his back pocket. “Here.”  
“Got it.” Taking the phone from him, Eli answered. “Hello?”  
Gavin focused on the road, ignoring Eli as he awkwardly tried to explain the situation to the other person on the line. Gavin assumed it was Nines.

Soon, Eli sighed. “Give me a moment. Gav, pull over. We’ll switch drivers.”  
“How about we take a break and stop to get gas instead?” Gavin asked, swinging off on an exit marked ‘Gary Owen.’ Pulling into the gas station, Gavin took the phone from Eli.

“Hello?” Gavin asked, dreading Nines’s  response in the split-second pause before it came.

“Gavin!” Nines’s  voice was panicked, angry. “Where are you? We need to talk.”  
“I’m with Eli, Nines. I told you that.” Gavin said, feeling hollow inside as he spoke.

“I know, but where are you? You mentioned that you were leaving Detroit.” Nines asked, desperate. “I’m so…”  
“Look, Nines. I answered so you wouldn’t worry. I’m OK. Don’t call again.” Hanging up, Gavin opened the door on the truck. The wind and snow slapped him in the face, and Gavin felt everything inside him freeze.

Trying his credit card, Gavin found the pump malfunctioning.

Walking robotically to the truck stop, Gavin poked his head in. A small glass counter sat off to the right, and memorabilia of Montana filled the rest of the space.

Traditional items from the Native America tribes sat on a shelves, and saddles took up a third of the small store.

A young woman sat at the counter. “Hello.”

“Hi. I was having some issue with the pump taking my card. Would you mind setting pump number four up with thirty bucks?” Gavin handed over his card.   
“Of course.” Ringing up the purchase, the girl looked vaguely uncomfortable as she handed the card back. “I hope you have a good day, although it seems that it hasn’t been good so far.”  
“You can tell?” Gavin asked, shocked.

Sympathy fused her face into a sad, pinched expression. “The fact that there are tears frozen somewhat on your face says it hasn’t been.”

Looking away, Gavin rubbed at his face. “Thank you.”

Smiling a real, slightly sad smile, the woman nodded. “Feel better, OK?”

Gavin felt a kick of embarrassment. Nodding, he ducked out.

Walking back to the truck, Gavin started the flow of gasoline before leaning back to stare at the gray skies above. “Damnit.” He whispered.

Eli walked around, scanned Gavin. “Do you want to keep driving, or should I take over?”

“I… want to drive.” Gavin said, hearing the pump click.

Checking the total, Gavin sent Eli in to get change while he climbed back up and started the truck.

Swinging in, Eli looked over at Gavin. “Wanna talk about it?”  
“No.” Gavin simply said, pulling back out on to the road that led to the university.

The next hour was spent in silence with music blocking communication. Pulling off on the main street exit, Gavin noticed Eli stirring.

“OK, so tell me where to go.” Gavin said, watching for road signs.

“OK, so swing up 14th street.” Eli said, reading off the maps application. “It should be coming up at the end of the main strip of buildings, where the pharmacy is.”

“OK.” Following the signs, Gavin grumbled at the traffic. “I swear, everyone’s out and about.”

“Well, I mean, it’s a college town. A lot of kids are probably out after class. Or ditching class.” Eli said, keeping track of the signs. “I vote we turn on Cattail, go in and get food then go to the hotel. It should be the next light after this one.”

“Got it.” Gavin navigated, turning into a small strip mall. Turning in the first available opening, Gavin  navigated won the narrow lane containing a sandwich shop, a burger place and sushi.

Parking, Gavin unbuckled

“What’s your poison?” Eli asked, climbing out.

Mirroring him, Gavin shook his head. “I’m not super hungry.”

Walking toward the establishments, Eli glanced back. “You need to eat. Let’s go for burgers. I’ll treat.”

“You don’t have…” Gavin started, but Eli interrupted.

“I know I don’t have to, I want to, asshole. Now, let’s go. I bet a shake would help. Hell, fatty food in general is a plus.”

“I love you, but right now I want you to fall on ice.” Gavin said, then laughed cynically as Eli slipped. “Damn, ask and ye shall receive, I guess.”  
“Fuck you.” Eli snapped, throwing a handful of snow at Gavin, who smirked.

“That was pathetic.” Gavin said, offering Eli a hand up.

Eli took it and stood with Gavin’s help. “Let’s just get food and go to sleep.”

Walking in, Gavin and Eli both ordered. Gavin grabbed a simple cheese burger, and a thing of fries. Eli added a vanilla shake and ordered a chocolate shake and a bacon cheeseburger meal for himself.

After getting their food, they sat down at the tables. Munching away, Gavin found himself ravenous, downing much of his meal within ten minutes, including the glutton’s portion of fries.

Eli smiled. “Feel better?”

Gavin said nothing, sucking down his shake.

“You’re welcome, Gav.” Eli said, finishing off his food. After taking a few photos with the staff, Eli smiled and led the way back to the truck. Driving the rest of the way to the hotel, the two found themselves exhausted.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK! So, we're coming to the end of this story. And as a warning, I will be adding a few tags for the next chapter. So double check them before you read the next chapter. This one is fine, but the next one will have some additional warnings.

Arriving at the hotel, they checked in to their rooms, went up and both fell asleep within ten minutes of getting into their room.

Waking up, Gavin noticed that his phone was vibrating.  Rolling over half asleep, he picked it up to see a flurry of text messages.

Nines wrote: Gavin, please…. Talk to me. Where are you? Are you still in Detroit? Please, don’t do this. 

Later texts read along the lines of :

I know you don’t want me to call, but I had a few questions. When are you coming back? 

Gavin shot back a text. Nines… stop. I’ll call you when I get back to Detroit, OK? 

Closing his eyes, he clutched the phone.

It vibrated again. Another text.

  1. I… I miss you. And I do love you. Come home soon, OK?



Rolling over, he closed his eyes for a few moments. _Damn it, I did the right thing, didn’t I?_ Sadness and broken heart pieces dug into his gut.

Sitting up, Gavin climbed out of bed. Showering, nudged Eli. “You up?”

“Yeah. Wanna go get breakfast? I’ve heard about a couple of possible places. We need to go to the school sometime around nine-ish.”  Eli asked, sitting up.

Glancing at his phone, Gavin saw that it was 8:00 AM. “Sure, sounds good to me.”

Standing, Gavin shaved, doing his best to look presentable for his brother’s conference. After that, he threw on a pair of slacks and a ‘nicer’ shirt over his sensor shirt. Eli entered the bathroom after Gavin exited, showering and shaving while Gavin sat on his bed.

Eli walked out ten minutes later, looking as if he’d pressed his clothes in the ten minuets he was in the shower.  “Wow, you can clean up. Great. I owe Chole five bucks.”  
“Want a picture for proof?” Gavin growled, and Eli pulled out his phone.

“Hell yes!” Eli reached out, pulled Gavin close. Flipping his tablet to camera mode, Eli snapped the photo before Gavin could push away.

“That looks great.” Eli smiled, setting it as his new lock screen.

Blushing, Gavin walked away. “No putting that on social media, OK?”

“How about after we get back to Detroit? Does that work?” Eli asked, smiling.

“No. No offense, I don’t want to deal with the reporters.” Gavin smiled at Eli’s pout. “Nice try. No. Let’s go. Where are the places they suggested?”  
“Well, do you want a full breakfast, or a doughnut or two?” Eli asked, reaching and taking the keys from Gavin.

“Um….I guess full breakfast.” Gavin followed, trying unsuccessfully to grab the keys.

“I’m driving.” Eli said, pulling the keys out of reach.

“Fiiiiiiiinnnneee. But I get to drive back.” Gavin said, hopping into the passengers seat.

“OK, we’ll see.” Eli said, driving out.

“Where are we going?” Gavin asked, watching the road ahead of them.

“Some place called Cats Eye café? It was recommended.” Eli said, and that was all Gavin needed to know.

Arriving, they found a parking spot on the main walkway, and moved down the block to the restaurant.

Sitting down, the two ordered.  Stirring coffee creamer into his mug, Gavin sighed. “Eli, am I making a mistake?”

Eli looked up, sympathy welling in his eyes. “I was wondering when this was going to come up. I worry that you are, yes.”

Gavin pressed his thumbs into his eyes. “I.. I feel like I made myself clear, that I couldn’t go on living in fear of her and that I was way more upset about the report.”  
Eli nodded. “That makes sense, Gavin. I worry about you choosing to leave because it’s clear you two love each other.”  
Gavin nodded. “I know. But he’s changed. He’s so obsessed with getting his version of justice that he seems to forget to care about anything other than that. I’ve asked him to let it go, to please be there for me first. But…”

“He keeps putting this issue first? I think he might be worried that a copycat offender might occur. Maybe he thinks if she gets a higher sentence, no one will attack you.” Eli said, nodding to the waitress as she dropped off the food.

“I think that’s a genie in a bottle. Now that someone has attacked me, I doubt that this idea will go away. I think I’ll always be accused of being anti-android.” Leaning back against the booth, Gavin closed his eyes against the upcoming headache. “And it scares me, but going after the person who’s already been sentenced isn’t going to do much.”

“You don’t think she’ll get a higher sentence?” Eli asked, surprised.

“Nah. Felony assault, usually the sentence is somewhere around ten years if a human attacks another human. I don’t think the sentencing should be any different for android on human interaction. The fact that she got a lifetime is because the judge thought she was trying to kill me. I don’t know that I believe that, but hey, whatever. I think it’s better if she’s off the street.” Gavin said, digging into his huevo rancheros.

“Nines knows this?” Eli asked, between bites of his breakfast.

“Yeah, he does. We work the same job, we know the charges. It was unlikely that she was going to get the death penalty. Hell, that’s not normally a punishment for felonious assault.” Gavin said, taking the last sip of his coffee.   

“What else happened that pushed you away?” Eli asked, finishing off his food.

“Well, he just pushed all other aspect of our relationship away. I missed being able to hug him. After the courthouse attack, he basically became a giant bodyguard. But that’s all the relationship was.” Gavin stared at the bits of food he had left, and sighed. “I missed the connection we’d had. Everything was gone.”

Eli sighed. “Yeah, that sounds awful.” It was lame, but Gavin knew his brother was trying.

“Thanks.” Gavin said, downing the last of his food. “Let’s go.”

Standing, Gavin stretched. Eli stood, gently shoulder bumping Gavin. “It’ll be OK.”

The two paid, leaving to meet the representative at the college.

The hours of the conference passed quickly, ang Gavin found himself back in the hotel faster than expected.

Lying down on his bed, Gavin sighed. Flipping on the TV, he let it sink into the background.

Eli dropped down next to him. “Wanna go get dinner?”

“I guess. Any other places you want to try?”  Gavin asked, rolling back to his feet.

“Um… I’m not really in the mood for a sit-down place. What’a say to fast food?” Eli asked, picking up the keys from the table.

“Works for me.” Standing, Gavin pulled his jacket back on.

“Wings?” Eli asked, elbowing Gavin.

“Hell yes.”  _Wings sound amazing._ “Let’s go!”

The dinner and the rest of the night passed quickly, with both men playing games together on a couple of console emulators.

After an hour or three of gaming, Gavin smiled. “This is nice.”   
Eli glared. “I swear, you’re cheating.”

“Get gud, slacker.” Gavin said, nudging his brother.

“Fuck off. It’s probably time for bed.” Eli stood, went to his bed. “I want a re-match when we get home.”

“Sure.”  Gavin smiled. “I’d like that. Maybe we could pull out a few board games.”

“You have enough friends to do that?” Eli asked, aghast. “Wow, how did your communication skill improve to that point?”

Gavin flipped his brother off. “Fuck you, go to bed.”

Eli laughed, unlocking his room. “Night, Gavin. See you at ten tomorrow.”  
“Fuck you, asshole. Goodnight.” Gavin  flopped back onto his bed.

Closing his eyes, he felt better than he had for at least a month and a half. Or at least, that’s what he told himself.

Waking up the next day, Gavin rolled out of bed, tossing on a pair of jeans and a graphic T-shirt he hadn’t worn since high school over a thermal long-sleeved shirt. Eli had already packed his things, which he appreciated.

Throwing on his various wintery items, Gavin did a fast perusal for any forgotten items, then  grabbing his stuff, Gavin ran down to throw his stuff into the truck.

Eli grinned, glancing at the clock as he leaned against the check-in counter. It was nine-thirty. “Forgot to set an alarm, huh? I was about to come back for you.”

“Shut it. Let’s go!” Gavin smiled, leading the way out to the truck.

Eli sighed. “Excited, are we?”  
“Wow, you were able to figure it out. Gold star, big brother. You finally understand social cues.”  Gavin hip checked his brother. “Com’on, slow poke.”

Eli rolled his eyes. “I’m so hitting you with a snowball.”

“With or without a rock?” Gavin asked, moving to the truck and climbing in.

Eli started the truck. “Let me think about it.”

The drive took about an hour to the north entrance.

Climbing out, Eli and Gavin took advantage of their time together.

Dancing up the trail to Ol’ Faithful, Gavin egged Eli on. “Come on. Let’s go!”

Eli nodded. “We need a picture together as it erupts.”

Setting the camera timer to go off as it erupted, Gavin and Eli leaned against each other.

“Five, four three…” Grinning for the picture, Gavin watched the flash go off. “Cool. All good?”  
“Should be.” Eli picked it up. “Yep. All good. Let’s go.”

The rest of the day was spent hiking, and by the time the two drove back to a hotel closer to the park, they were both exhausted. The rest of the week passed by as Gavin and Eli enjoyed the wide open space, running wild.  Climbing on the plane for the ride home, Eli curled up in his seat, and Gavin found himself dozing on the wall.

The flight passed with the two of them mostly unaware, only coming around about fifteen minutes before the flight was to end.

Opening his eyes, Gavin stretched, and pulled out his phone. He’d ignored it while he was away, knowing that work wasn’t going to bug him. Texts from Hank, Connor and Tina all sat on the lock screen.

Unlocking it, he read through them.

Hank and Connor were on the warpath because they had found out Gavin had left Nines.

Tina was much more concerned that they’d broken up and wanted to know if he was OK.

Sending Tina a text, Gavin leaned back in his seat as the final descent was announced.

Nudging Eli so he could be ready to leave as soon as the plane allowed, Gavin smiled. “Hey. We’re back.”

Eli nodded. “Good thing we don’t have to drive. I’m tired.”

“Same.” Gavin said. “But hey, we got some exercise.”

“Mmm. Are you going to call Nines once we get back home?” Eli asked, twisting a little to relive the stiffness that had occurred while he slept.

“I…kidna told him I would to get him to leave me alone while we were there.” Gavin said, mumbling under his breath.

“Good. You two need to talk, anyway.” Eli said, and Gavin found he had no retort for that.

The plane landed, and Gavin and Eli were—once again—some of the first people off the plane.

Eli called Chole, confirming that there was a car waiting for the two of them.

Swinging into the automated cab, Eli turned to Gavin.

“Call him.” Eli said, smiling. “You’ll feel better to have it done.”

“Fine.” Picking up his phone, Gavin unlocked the phone, and pressed Nines’s  contact.

Pressing it to his ear, Gavin stared out the windows.

Nines picked up halfway through the first ring. “Gavin.” He sounded warily ecstatic. “You’re home?”  
“I’m not back at Eli’s yet, but I’m in the state.” Gavin answered, unsure of how to feel. “If you want to talk sometime soon, we can meet…”

“I’ll be at Eli’s house in twenty minutes. See you then.” Apprehension filled Nines’s  tone.   
“Um… I was thinking we could meet else…” Nines had already hung up, leaving Gavin to stare at the phone.

“Well, he’s not putting that off,” Eli said, after Gavin stuttered out that Nines would be meeting them at the house. “If he hurts you, I have all the tools necessary to disassemble him.”

Gavin felt his gut drop at that. “Please, don’t talk like that. I really don’t know what I’ll do if he doesn’t listen this time.

Eli reached out, took Gavin’s hand. “You’ll hold on and get through it. That’s what you’ve done before, and it’s what you’ll always do.”

Pulling away, Gavin nodded. “I hope that’s it.”

The rest of the drive passed in nervous anticipation for Gavin.

When they got to the gate leading to Eli’s house, Gavin noted that his car was parked outside the gate, and that Nines wasn’t in it.

“Oh, god.” Gavin felt his stomach start to riot. Rocking slightly, he wondered “Why did I agree to this?”

“Gavin. Stop.” Eli raised an eyebrow and reaching out to stop the rocking. “You’re OK.”

“Says you.”  Gavin said, spotting Nines waiting on the steps for them. “Fuck. He’s here.”  
“Isn’t that a good thing? Gav, calm down.” Eli reached over, pulled Gavin to his side. “No matter what happens, you’re still my favorite little brother.”

“Only brother, dumbass.” Gavin said, as Eli opened the door.

Eli stepped out, then reached to pull Gavin out. Gavin stood, and saw Nines looking at him.

Ice blue eyes met brown as they stared at each other.

“Gavin.” Nines said, moving down the steps, stopping when Gavin stepped back.

Unsure of what to say, Gavin opted to say nothing. Moving to the back, he started to take his suitcase from Eli, who shook his head.

“Go talk to him. I’ll grab your stuff.” Eli said, holding it away from Gavin.

“You sure?” Gavin asked, attempting to take the suitcase.

Eli sent him a pointed stare. “Go.”

Crossing his arms, Gavin made his way up the steps toward Nines. “Let’s go inside. It’s too cold out here to talk here.”

Nodding Nines followed Gavin inside, and up to the room Gavin was going to be staying in.

Closing the door, Gavin took a deep breath. “OK. Say what you want.” Staring at Nines’s shoes, Gavin hunched his shoulders and held his arms across him.

“Gavin, I’m so sorry.” Nines’s voice was soft, pain-filled. “I didn’t want to hurt you. “

Refusing to look up, Gavin nodded. “I know. But what are you sorry for? I think that’s more important.”  
“Please, look at me.” Nines implored, moving closer.

Backing up as far as he could, Gavin hugged himself tighter. Looking up, he felt anger melt away as he saw how obviously torn up Nines was.

His hair was a mess, clothes creased and messy, as if he’d not changed since Gavin had left.

Looking away, Gavin rubbed at his right arm, shoulder to elbow. “I…” Pressing back against the wall, Gavin slid around Nines, moved to the bed and sat down.

Curling into a ball, Gavin looked at Nines, who’d frozen. “I couldn’t take it anymore, Nines. I’m tired of fighting this fight. I wanted it to be done when she was sentenced.” Feeling tears rise and anxiety pool in his gut, Gavin pressed his forehead to his knees. “You vanished into rage, anger. You wouldn’t let it go. You wouldn’t apologize. It was that damn report that hurt most, Nines.”

“Gavin.” Nine knelt in front of him. “Look at me, OK?”

Looking above his knees, Gavin met Nines’s gaze.

“I’m sorry that I vanished. I… just want…RA9, I don’t know what I want beside you.” Nines said. “As for the report, I didn’t know it would hurt you that badly.”

Feeling a spark warm his gut—partially anger and partial love—Gavin tried to stop it before he was hurting again. “Nines, how could it not?”

“Gavin.” Reaching up, Nines slid his hand to cup his chin, standing to tilt it to look at him. “Have I killed the feelings you have for me? Or had?”  
Fire burned in his gut. “N…..” Tears slipped down, and he fell backwards. “No.” he whispered, feeling his heart cut into his stomach again. “No.”

“Gavin.” Nines sat down next to him, on the bed. Not touching, but only a hairbreadth away from him. “I dropped the lawsuit.”

Surprised, Gavin turned to meet his gaze. “Why? I thought that you…. that you weren’t going to let it go.” He started to reach out, only to pull back.

Nines’s eyes watered. “I wasn’t. Not until you left. I still…. I don’t think justice was served in this case. Not by a longshot, but if you want me to stop, I will.”

Sitting up, Gavin turned back to Nines. “Why don’t you think justice was served?”

Nines stared at Gavin. “You think it was? She was obviously trying to kill you. It should have been attempted murder of an officer.”

“She wasn’t. I don’t think she had a full grasp of the consequences. Even when I said something, it didn’t seem to click for her. I think she was too far gone by that point.” Gavin said, voice soft. “What it was… I think I’d probably call it assault. It was scary, awful. I won’t lie. But I don’t believe her goal was to kill me.”

Nines sat up. “I…give me a moment.”

Tears welled up, and Gavin sighed. After a moment, he said “OK. Keep going.”

“She’s by definition stronger than you. You didn’t have a way out!” Nines argued, and Gavin felt his gut clench.

“You’re right. I didn’t. But many women would have little to no defense against me. Even self-defense courses don’t guarantee they would be able to fight me. While this is considered and may go into a ruling, it doesn’t normally change the basic guidelines, does it?” Gavin said, leaning back.

“But… Fine, you have a valid point.” Nines said, reaching out to cup his cheek. Gavin pulled away. Nines took a deep breath, and dropped his hand.  “It just feels wrong.”  
“Nines, it was going to feel wrong to you no matter what. It’s kind of part of being deviant. When you…care about someone, you feel that any slight of any kind is wrong. It’s because you care that this cuts so much more deeply.” Gavin pressed his hands into the bedspread. “But I can’t keep fighting this with you, because I believe justice has been served. She got life in prison, when the maximum for that is usually much lower.”

Nines scanned Gavin. “I need…. can I hold you? Please.”

“Not before you explain your report. How could you, Nines? You risked some serious consequences for me. I don’t understand, how you could write down that I was anti-android in a report?”  
Nine’s LED spun yellow. “I didn’t call you anti-android, Gavin. I would never do that on a report. I’d call you out like I usually do and then write down only facts. What I said in my report was that I advised you not to fire, and that you did anyway. Nothing else. They were the ones to bring the complaint against you. I’m sorry Gavin, but I can’t lie on an official report. And if I did, it would have made you look worse when they reviewed my visual footage. I didn’t want you to get into trouble for it and for me lying about it.”

 Signing, Gavin smiled. “I hate that you did that, but I understand. It makes sense.” Looking up, Gavin met Nines’s eyes. “And you wouldn’t be the Nines I know and love if you hadn’t been a fucking stickler down to the marrow of your metal bones.”   

Reaching out, Nines pressed his hands to Gavin’s cheek.

 “I don’t want you to leave.” Gavin saw Nines’s tears fall down his cheeks as he whispered.

Leaning back, Gavin felt his own tears answer. Nines sat, tears dripping from his face.

Gavin launched himself into Nines’s arms. “The worst part about you vanishing was not being held or talked to anymore. I couldn’t get you to understand why I was so angry.  I missed you.”

“I missed you, too. And that’s part of why I fought this case so hard. I’m so scared that copycats are going to come.” Nines whispered, pressing his nose into Gavin’s hair. “I don’t know what I’ll do if that happens.”  
“If it happens, it happens. There’s no way to know.” Gavin burrowed into Nines’ neck. “I…” his voice broke. “I won’t deny that I’m scared, or that I fear it happening. I am. I’m completely scared.”

Nines wrapped around him, held him tight to his chest and said nothing.

“I think, though, that it’s too late to stop anyone who wants to do that. But I can’t spend my life in fear of that.” Leaning back a little to meet Nines’s gaze, Gavin then pressed a kiss to his cheek. “And neither should you. I do want a proper apology about the report though. ”

Nines sighed. “I am so sorry about the report I filed. I never imagined it could hurt you so badly. Please, forgive me for that, and for going off the rails with the lawsuit. I guess I really did become obsessive.” Sincerity flowed from the words and Gavin felt the small rift in his stomach start to heal with the words spoken.  

“No shit.” Gavin mumbled, pressing against Nines.

“Gavin?” Nines asked, receiving a gentle “hmm?” in return.

“I really do not want you to leave. Please, give me another chance.” Nines implored, holding Gavin tightly.

“I don’t want to, either. Not if we can go back to the way things were before this…or at least you aren’t obsessed with this case and trying to unreasonably protect me from everything.” Gavin said, lying down and pulling Nines down next to him. “Promise me that, and we’ll go home soon enough.”  
“Can we clarify the second part of the statement? I don’t know what you mean by ‘unreasonably.” Nines said, holding Gavin to him like a lifeline.

Sighing, Gavin nuzzled in. “We can talk about that later.”

Yawning, Gavin mumbled. “I’m kinda tired. We spent most of the week hiking and running around.”

Nines nuzzled into Gavin’s hair. “I’ve struggled to sleep since you left. I need to charge, but I don’t want to let you go…is it OK if…”  
Wrapping his arms around Nines, Gavin snuggled as close as he could. “Stay with me, if you can. Do you have your charging cable?”  
Nines pulled out the simple device. “Yeah.”

“Cool.” Snagging it, Gavin plugged it into the lamp next to the bed. Shucking his jacket and pants, Gavin climbed under the covers before holding out his arms to Nines.

Nines did the same, discarding clothing and crawling underneath the covers. Wrapping his arms around Gavin, Nines let out a sigh that wracked his entire body. “I love you.”

Gavin smiled. “Go to sleep, overachiever.”  Closing his eyes, he treasured being held once again.

A few hours later, Gavin opened his eyes, finding Nines still holding onto him as if his life depended on it.

Reaching up, he ran his fingers over his cheek. Nines didn’t move, didn’t react. His LED spun blue, though, so everything was alright.

_How long did you stay up, Nines?_

Pulling at Nines’s arms, Gavin pulled out of them, to turn around and look down. “I’m sorry.”

Standing, Gavin felt his stomach rumble. _Did I skip dinner?_ Glancing at the clock revealed that it was about midnight. _Well, perfect time for a snack._

Standing, Gavin heard Nines shift. Glancing back, he could see his LED spin yellow.

“Nines. I’m just going to get a snack. I’ll be back.” Nines stopped moving, calmed down as Gavin spoke.

_We still have things to talk about._ Closing the door, Gavin walked down the hallway and slipped into the kitchen. “If I remember correctly, Eli kept the good stuff in the cabinet under the bread box.”

Opening said cabinet, Gavin grinned. “Jackpot.”  
“And here you are, stealing my best junk food.” Eli said, flipping on the light.

Jumping about a foot in the air and dropping food while doing so, Gavin rotated about three-quarters before realizing he was OK. “Jesus, what do you do, move like a shadow?”

Eli grinned. “I mean, sort of? How are you?” His eyes were serious. “Are you OK?”  
Feeling regret for starting the entire issue, Gavin looked down. “Yeah, I’m OK.”  
“He says while looking down. Gav, what’s up?” Eli said, picking up the package of Cheetos.

“It’s nothing.” Gavin grinned, while making a grab for the Cheetos.

“It’s something. And these are my hostages. I’m hungry, too. Better talk fast if you want any.” Eli said, opening it and taking a handful out.

“I….I feel bad about causing the entire issue over this week.” Gavin said, making a grab for the Cheetos.

“Wait, do you feel bad about being assaulted? Because if Nines put that in your head, I’m taking him apart.” Eli’s glare was strong as he held tight to the Cheetos.

“No, not that. That was the psychopath’s issue.” Gavin said, leaning back. “I feel bad about choosing to leave, and then go back a week later.”

Eli’s gaze lightened. “From what I’ve heard, you were justified. And who cares? If anything, you can call it a break. One that you cut short. Nothing out of the ordinary about that.” Handing Gavin the Cheetos, Eli sat down.   
“Well, Nines mentioned it to his dad and brother. So I think they’re waiting to bury me.”  Sighing, Gavin leaned back as he munched on a couple of handfuls of food. “So, I feel bad because I know it hurt enough for him to ask for help.”

“Gavin, you were hurting enough to leave. Doesn’t that say something?” Eli asked, reaching over to grab a handful of food.

“I guess? I still feel bad.” Gavin said, munching. “But maybe that’s just because I’m tired. I should go back to bed.”

“Mmm.” Eli smiled, mummering noncommittally.

“Shut up.”  Gavin found himself grinning. “I know what that means.”

“MMMMM.” Eli said, mummering louder.

“I’m leaving.” Gavin said walking back to his room. Glancing back, he could see Eli’s shoulders shaking.

Slipping back into his room, Gavin noted Nines’s sleepy gaze. “Hey, you.”

Saying nothing, Nines reached out for him.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Gavin cupped his cheek. “You OK?”

“Yeah. Just tired.” Sitting up, Nines smiled at him. “I…missed you. It’s the longest we’ve been apart since we became partners.”  
“I know.” Gavin leaned back on his left arm. “How charged are you? You seem exhausted when I got here.”  
“I…may…” Nines blushed, blue flooding his cheeks. “May have been down to like, five or six percent….”

“Nines.” Gavin stared down. “Why? Why stay up so long?”  
Nines’s blush intensified. “I couldn’t sleep without knowing you were safe. And you made it clear that you didn’t want to talk. So, I worried.”

Gavin leaned forward, forcing Nines to lean back. Caging him in, Gavin sighed. “That wasn’t healthy. I don’t want you to ever risk your health again.”

“I…don’t leave again. Talk to me.” Nines said, flipping their position.

“I tried. You didn’t listen.” Gavin glared at Nines, who let his head hang for a moment.

“I know. I’ll do better.” Nines whispered. “I know that I don’t ‘feel’ correctly, that…”

Gavin reached up, pulled Nines down to his chest. “No, stop. There isn’t a ‘correct’ way to feel. I was wrong to say that. What you were was wrong for not listening. That’s all.”

Smiling, Nines wrapped his arms around Gavin. “I love you.”

“I love you, too. I do think we both need therapy, though.” Gavin pressed his cheek into Nines’s hair.

“Wow, you think?” Nines’s sarcasm made Gavin laugh.

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Go back to sleep. You probably need to fully charge.” Gavin closed his eyes, tired but happy.

Nines rolled to his side, falling back asleep as well.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check the tags before going in! I mentioned it last chapter, but I figure it can't hurt to remind people. (Also, I"m sorry if this sucks, I haven't written a scene like this since high school and now I"m in my first year in the work force.)
> 
> Anyway, this is the end of the story, but there is an epilogue.

The next thing Gavin knew, he heard Nines’s voice.  
“Hi, Fowler. I won’t be in today.” Nines’s voice was soft. “I’m having some issue with my power levels and I want to go see if I can get it fixed.”

Fowler apparently acquiesced without much of a fight. “OK, sir. Yes, sir. See you tomorrow.”

Closing out the conversation, Nines pulled Gavin into his arms. “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this. Let’s get your stuff moved back home.”

Gavin smiled, before concern and clarity about what Nines had told Fowler sank in. “Are you actually having issues with charging?”  
Nines snorted. “You’re smarter than that, Gav. I’m fine. I haven’t spent much time with you, and I want to fix that.”

Joy warmed Gavin’s stomach. Reaching up, he pulled Nines down to him. Pressing his lips to Nines, he held tight. They spent a few minutes like that, before getting up and getting ready to move everything back home.

“Oh, also, Fowler said to remind you that you’re meant to report to work tomorrow.” Nines said, pressing his lips to Gavin’s temple.

Snorting, Gavin pushed Nines away.

The rest of the day was spent moving and avoiding the rest of the world, after finding and scheduling therapy sessions for the two of them. By the time dinner rolled around, the apartment was more or less back to normal.

Slumping dramatically onto the couch, Gavin stretched. “OK, I’m done. What do you say…”

Nines dropped down next to him, pulled him into his lap. Chest met chest and he kissed Gavin with all his soul.

Gavin felt heat rise in his cheeks. Breaking apart after a moment, he took a deep breath before diving back in. Unbuttoning Nines’s shirt, Gavin slid his hand over his chest.  Nines slid his hand under Gavin’s T-shirt, pulling it up and only reluctantly breaking the kiss to pull it off.

So lost in their own world were they, they didn’t hear the knocking on the door until Gavin heard Hank call out.

“If you’re in there, Reed, we want to talk.” Hank called out, anger evident in his tone.

Leaning back and taking a couple of deep breaths to cool down, Gavin looked up at Nines. “If your father kills me, I blame you.”

Nines smiled, leaning down to press a kiss to the pulse point in his neck before nipping at him. “I wouldn’t let him kill you.”

Sitting back, Nines rebuttoned his shirt and let Gavin get back to rights before opening the door. “Hi, come on in.”  
Hank came in first, and Connor was second. “You’d better have a good explanation, Reed. You hurt Nines.” Hanks eyes spit fire.

Gavin met Hanks gaze head on. “I know you’re protecting your youngest, but we’ve worked it out. You don’t need to know what was going on.”

“The hell, you say! You hurt him and I want an explanation.” Connor snapped, LED spinning yellow.

Nines stepped in front of the encroaching two-person mob. “Hey, I was just as culpable. And he’s right, you don’t need to know. We’ve figured it out.”

Hank and Connor both turned to look at Gavin, suspicious. “Nines, we want an explanation. You called—stress levels about 80 percent—and said that Gavin had left. Something doesn’t add up.”  
“You were at eighty percent stress levels?” Gavin asked, concerned. Standing he went to Nines. “You didn’t tell me.”  
“The inability to sleep that first night might have been part of it.” Nines said, smiling sheepishly.

Gavin felt his stomach shrink. “God, I …” cutting himself off, Gavin glanced back at Connor and Hank. “Yeah, that would do it.”

“He called us the moment he found the note. From what we got, you were leaving him. Yet here you are, back together.” Connor’s eyes stayed narrow, but his LED spun blue. “You two really figured it out?”

“Ya finally got that? Wow, advanced android.” Gavin replied, sarcasm closer to his normal tone when dealing with the two of them.

Hank glared for a good solid five minutes before sighing. “If you’ve figured it out, that’s great. We’ll leave the two of you alone, but Gavin,” Hank walked over, snagged his arm, and pinned him against the wall. “You hurt him again, you’ll regret it.”

Doing his best to keep relaxed, Gavin felt anxiety rise in his stomach. “I understand. Let go of me, now.”

Hank backed off, allowing Gavin to step around him and give himself a bit of personal space. Pulling in a few deep breaths to calm the panic roiling in his gut, Gavin backed away from all of them.

Nines came forward, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Glancing at Hank and Connor, he smiled. “I know you’re protecting me. I know. But for now, I  think it’s best if you leave.”

Hank nodded, turning toward Connor. “Com’on Con. We’ll talk to Nines later.”

The two left quietly, and Gavin felt some of the panic recede. “If he ever pins me like that again, I can’t guarantee I won’t flip.”

Nines sighed. “It’ll take time to get over that crap, but you’ll do it. I have faith.” Nuzzling back into Gavin hair, Nines grinned. “Wanna get back to what we were doing before they interrupted?”

Gavin felt heat take over the residual anger and fear. “Hell, yes. But I’m gonna feed the cats first.”

“MreeeP?” Luna asked, bounding over. Donkey followed, with a gaze of expectation.

“I swear they understand us.” Gavin said, picking up the fluffy ball.

Laughing, Nines nodded. “They’re uncanny.”

Moving to the kitchen, Gavin fed the cats, who dug in. “I think…” Squeaking, Gavin felt himself being thrown over Nines’s shoulder. “Geeze.” Laughing, gasping, Gavin clung to Nines. “Little warning next time?”  
Nines carried him to the bedroom, running his hand along Gavin’s legs. Gavin moaned as heat rushed through his body. Reaching the bed, Nines dropped him down on it. “Sure. Fair warning, I’m going to make you scream my name.”  Leaning down, he caged Gavin under him.

Feeling his heart beat speed, Gavin smiled. Pulling him down, Gavin pulled Nines down, bringing him into alignment with him, chest to hips.

Both let out a groan at the contact. Nines tilted Gavin’s head, stringing kisses along his neck.

“Gah. Nines… Nines please.” The weight pressing down into him had him begging and blushing.

Nines sat up, grinning.  Running his hand under Gavin’s shirt, he pulled it off once again. “I want this to stay off, this time.”

Gavin felt his neck flush. “I didn’t want to put it back on.”

Nines grinned. “I know.” Running his hand down Gavin’s neck, he smiled. “I want to kiss everywhere you’re blushing. And I know that it goes under the sensor shirt.”  Leaning down, he ran his tongue over Gavin’s neck, nipping and licking. Latching onto the spot just above the sensor shirt, Nines left a small mark.

Grasping onto Nines head, Gavin urged him on. “Please.”  
“I do love having you under me, begging.”  Nines laughed, slightly.

Running his hands over Nines’s shirt, Gavin began to unbutton and pull the shirt off of Nines. The second he could get his hands on Nines’s chest, he ran his hands over it.

Nines’s hands ran over the sensor shirt, and while Gavin could feel his hands, it was muted. “Hang on, I need a sec.” Gavin said, pushing against Nines’s chest.

Sitting up, Nines backed off. “You OK?”

Nodding, Gavin reached up and flipped the switch that turned off the shirt, then unbuckled the strap. “Yeah, give me a hand removing mine.”  
Nines’s eyes widened. “Are you sure?”

“Would I have said to do it if I weren’t?” Gavin asked, pulling off the arm a little, but struggling with the suction.

“Yes, you would.” Nines’s eyes sparkled. “But OK.” Reaching up, he pulled off the arm easily, checking to make sure that Gavin was OK while he did so.

Gavin wiggled backwards, and the second he was free of his arm, he reached down and pulled the sensor shirt off. Reaching out, he pulled himself to Nines and rubbed against him. “God, I missed…’ The flush on his chest deepened, and Gavin pressed his head into the crook of Nines’s neck as lust and joy flooded him.  
“Skin-to-skin contact.” Nines smiled, placing his hand on the small of Gavin’s back to control his movements. “So did I.”  
Spreading his legs, Gavin keened as the two of them slipped together like to puzzle pieces. “Babe.”

Nines attacked with his mouth, pouring ever moment of love, fear and loss from the past two days into the kiss.

Arching up into Nines’s hips, Gavin relished in the feeling of Nines’s cock on his thigh. “Want you.”  
Nines slid his hands under the waistband of Gavin’s jeans, cupping the small cleft between his cheeks. “Want you.” He mimicked, reaching to undo the snap on the front of the jeans. Keanding Gavin’s ass with one hand, Nines expertly undid the snap on Gavin’s jeans.

Pulling Gavin’s jeans and briefs off in one fell swoop, Gavin barely had time to breath before Nines was holding onto his cock. “Ni…Nines.” He whispered, caught up in the immense pleasure washing over his being.  Weakly, he reached for Nines’s pants, trying to take them off.

Slowly, Nines stroked him while avoiding Gavin’s questing hands. “Gavin?”  
“Mnh?” Gavin asked, almost beyond human speech patterns.

“I love you. In all forms, in all ways.” Nines grasped him tightly, causing Gavin to gasp and buck.

“I love you, too. Nines!” Gavin thrust against Nines’s hand, moaning. “Please. Come here.” One last desperate attempt to grab Nines’s waistband worked.

Unbuttoning his pants, Gavin did his best to shove them down far enough, so they’d not get in the way. Grasping Nines’s cock, Gavin smiled as Nines’s gasp mirrored his own earlier. “Turnabout’s fair play. Take them off.”

Nines obliged, folding the pants. “Want you.” Reaching for the bedside drawer, he pulled out lube and dropping it next to Gavin. Slotting themselves together, Nines reached to palm Gavin’s ass. “God, I missed you.”  Leaning down, Nines took Gavin’s lips as he popped the cap on the lube.

“Are you sure, Gav?” Nines asked, resting one hand on Gavin’s hip.

“Want you.” Gavin reached for Nines. “Want you inside me.”  
Nines slid the first finger inside, watching as Gavin smirked. “What, you expected a scream there? Keep going, buddy.”  
 Nines laughed darkly. “Oh, I’m gonna make you scream harder because you said that.”

Laughing, Gavin grinned. “Try me.”  
Nines leaned down, nipped at his earlobe. “I will.” Slipping in another finger, he began to slowly stretch Gavin before slipping in another finger.

Running his free hand up Gavin’s right side, he reached out to cup Gavin’s arm.

Gavin shuddered, feeling sparks fly up his arm. “Nines!” He squeaked.

Nines pulled his hand away. Concern colored over his face. “Are you OK? I’ve never heard that sound before.”  
“Yeah, just surprised me.” Gavin smiled, reassuringly. “I still want you.”

Nines leaned over. Kissing Gavin, Nines nipped and licked his way down Gavin’s chest, pausing to tease his neglected nipples.

Hissing, Gavin felt the blush that had started to fade reform. “Babe.”

Nines smiled, pulling the left nipple into his mouth and sucking hard.

Letting out a soft moan, Gavin groan. “Missed you. Want you inside me.”

Pure desire rose in Nine’s eyes as he heard those words. Using the free hand, Nines reached and uncapped the lube once again. Pouring more lube out, he stroked himself, eyes darkening further with lust. Brushing against Gavin’s prostate had Nines grinning as Gavin ground down against his hand.  
Gavin met his gaze, feeling himself beginning to leak. “Nines.”

Pulling out his fingers, Nines replaced them with his cock with one thrust in what felt like a nanosecond, causing Gavin to whimper, finally full.  “Nines!”

Nines’s face flooded blue. “RA9.”

Wrapping Gavin’s legs around his waist, Nines thrust, hitting Gavin’s prostate with each thrust. Bringing one hand up to Gavin’s throat, Nines pressed and held in a rhythm to extend the high while stroking Gavin with the other hand.

Screaming, Gavin came, marking both his and Nine’s stomach. “Nines!”

Laughing, gasping, Nines came a split-second later.

Dropping down beside Gavin, Nines pulled him to his chest as they calmed down.

“So good.” Gavin mumbled, pressing his face to Nines’s neck.

“Mmm.” Nines said, agreeing. “Love you.

“Love you too.” Gavin knew that they’d have to get up soon, clean up, but for now, it was enough to be together.

Standing, Nines picked Gavin up, and carried him to the shower.

Flipping on the water, Nines and Gavin held onto each other as they washed off.

Climbing out, Gavin reached for Nines. Tilting his chin, Gavin gently kissed Nines.

“Bed time.” Stumbling, Gavin crossed to the bedroom, pulled on a pair of PJ pants and fell into bed.  
Nines slid into next to him, wrapping his arm around Gavin and held the two of them together as they fell asleep. 

Waking up, Gavin smiled. Glancing over at Nines, he rolled over and stretched out.

Glancing over, he saw that the alarm was about to go off. _Damn it. I wanted a few more minutes._

Standing, he slipped not the bathroom, following his normal routine.

Throwing on underwear, his sensor shirt and arm, Gavin heard the alarm go off.

“Nines. Work. Let’s go.” Gavin said, dropping to sit next to Nines.

Reaching up, Nines snuggled Gavin to his chest. “I love you.”  
“God, you’re sappy. Come on. I’ve actually…wait, why was I about to say that I missed work?” Gavin took an internal check. “That’s weird.”

Nines pressed his hand to Gavin’s forehead. “You’re not warm, so I’m going to conclude that a miracle has occurred, and you actually did miss work.”

“Shut up.” Gavin jokingly pushed against Nine’s chest. “I’m gonna finish getting dressed.”

Standing, Gavin felt Nine’s gaze roam up and down his back, settling on his ass. “You going to get up, or…?”

Nines smirked. “I take much less time than you do to get ready. I’m gonna enjoy the show first.”  
Gavin rolled his eyes, fishing out a three-quarter sleeved T-shirt. “Let’s go, Tin can.”  

Nines snorted, standing. “OK, OK.”

Throwing on  his arm and then clothes, he was ready seconds later as Gavin finished throwing on his shoes and grabbing everything.

“You nervous?” Nines asked, leading the way to the car. “It’s been awhile since you’ve seen everyone.”  
“Nah.” Gavin grinned. “As weird as it is, I missed work.”  
“I bet that changes five minutes after we get to work.” Nines replied, opening the stairs and walking down.

“No comment.” Gavin deadpanned, walking alongside Nines to the car.

Traffic wasn’t great, but that was to be expected.  
Arriving about ten minutes before their shift arrived, Gavin snagged food from the next-door café and then followed Nines into work.

And was immediately ambushed.

“Gavin!” Tina called out, apparently joyous. “You bitch. How are you?”  
Rushing over, she grabbed his right arm. “Ohhhhhh. Toy.”

Gavin gently pulled away, rolling his eyes. “Can I eat for five minutes and then you can geek out about my new appendage?”

“Nope.” Tina said, pulling him to her desk and putting the coffee he’d been holding in that hand down.  Flipping over the hand, she poked his hand. “Can you feel that?”

“Why are we friends again?” Gavin asked, and laughed at Tina’s smug smile

“Cause no one else was gonna put up with your ass until they invented someone.” Tina replied, gently  tweaking his nose before patting his cheek.

Pulling away, Gavin flipped her off and picked up his coffee. “I’ll be at my desk. We can talk at lunch, alright?”  
“I’m holding you to that.” Tina chirped, causing Gavin to wince.

“That was on purpose, wasn’t it?” Gavin asked, and Tina merely grinned.

“Whatever.” Gavin said, walking to his desk.

Sitting down, Gavin munched on his food while starting up his computer.

Nines sat opposite, doing the same.

Smiling, they both turned to their work.

_We’re finally back to normal._ Gavin smiled, then saw that he had to fill out about fifty reams of paperwork. _Fuck me._ “You were right.”

“I always am.” Nines grinned.


	16. Chapter 16

The year of adjustment for the arm and everything else went fairly smoothly, and before Gavin knew it, it was his birthday once again.

Nines dropped down on the couch next to him, two days before the ninth. “Hey, what do you want to do for your birthday?”

Gavin glanced up, confused. “It’s not that soon. Why are you asking?”

“Gavin, it’s less than a week away.” Nines reached out, cupping his chin. “Did you forget what day you were born?”

Gavin pulled away, rolling his eyes. “No, you plastic piece of ass. I guess we just got busy.”  
“We never did get to do anything for your birthday last year. Wanna make up for it this year?” Nines asked, sliding one arm around his shoulders.

“Honestly? After work, I kinda just want to stay home and pig out on food. Does pizza work?”  Gavin leaned against Nines, enjoying the closeness and warmth.

“If that’s all you want to do, that’s fine. Are you sure you don’t want to do anything else?” Nines asked, running his hand along Gavin’s side.

Gavin grinned, reaching up to pull Nines down. “Keep you in bed most the night?”

Nines rolled his eyes. “Of all the things you want to do, the thing you can do all the time is the thing you choose.” Leaning down, he took Gavin’s lips, kissing deep and hard.

Gavin felt heat rise. “Let’s take advantage of that now.”

Nines picked him up, carried him to bed. “Of course.”

The ninth of October rolled around and—after Gavin and Nines got off work— they went home and cuddled up on the couch while waiting for pizza to arrive.

Hearing his phone buzz, Gavin picked it up. “Hello?”  
“Happy birthday, Lil’ bro. You’re ancient now.” Eli said, then hung up.

Snorting with laughter, Gavin called him back. “Fuck you, too. And thanks.”

“No problem. Enjoying your birthday?” Eli asked, and the brothers talked for awhile while Gavin reclined on Nine’s lap.

“Anyway, lil’ bro, come over sometime so I can give you your birthday gift.” Eli said, voice ringing with excitement. “I can’t wait to engrave that arm of yours and see how it turns out.”

Gavin squoze Nines’s hand with his right hand as he replied. “I’m excited, too. I’m gonna let you go, I think the pizza just got here.”  
“Call me when you’re ready to drop off the arm.” Eli said. “Talk to you later, babu.”

“Fuck you.” Gavin hung up.

Nines snorted. “Babu.”

Gavin rolled to gaze up into Nine’s eyes from his position. “Fuck you, too.”  
“Later.” Nines said, pushing Gavin off his lap gently so he could rise and answer the knock on the door.

Throwing on a classic show, Gavin hummed along with the opening.

Nines placed the pizza box in front of him, and sat back down. “Gavin?”

“Mmm?” Gavin was already vanished into the show.  
Smiling, Nines placed a small black velvet box down in front of the pizza.

Gavin did not react, nor did he notice. Snagging a slice of pizza, he munched on it as the first episode began.

Nines smirked, and got up for plates. “This is going to be so much fun.”

Gavin didn’t care as his favorite show played on. Nines reached out, pulling Gavin into his lap and slipping one hand under Gavin’s shirt to roam his partners bare chest.

About halfway through the sixth episode, Gavin looked up at Nines, from where he’d slouched against Nines’s chest.

He met Nine’s gaze head on. “Why are you staring at me?”

“Oh, just conducting a test. It’s nothing major.” Nines grinned.

“OK, well, I’m going to go to the bathroom. Mind letting me go to do that?”

Nines jokingly shoved Gavin away. “Nope. Going to keep you right here until you can’t hold it. Then watch as you race to get to the bathroom.”  
“Asshole.” Gavin grinned, walking around the table and to the bathroom.

Coming back, he noted the box on the table. “Hey, what’s that?”

“Part of the test.” Nines replied, picking it up and handing it to him. “Why don’t you open it?”  
“Ohhh. Present.” Gavin flipped open the lid. Gasping, he glanced at Nines through teary eyes. “IS this…?” A simple white metal band sat in the box.  
“I love you, I want you forever. Marry me?” Nines asked, not moving from the couch.

“Yes.” Gavin dove into Nine’s arms. “Yes.”

“Cool. It took you two and a half hours to notice it.” Nines said, laughing. “It’s fun to watch you get absorbed into something.”  Wrapping his arms around Gavin, Nines slipped his hand under his shirt, causing heat to flood both Gavin’s chest and cheeks.  
Pulling Nine’s lips to his, Gavin felt heat rise in his stomach as he kissed him passionately. “You’re an asshole. Now, take me to bed. The show can wait.”


End file.
